


The Most Fantastic Chronicles of Willow Wren

by emcon



Series: The Most Fantastic Chronicles of Willow Wren [1]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Jessica Jones (TV), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Hydra (Marvel), Sort Of, fuck hydra all my homies hate hydra, i make my own rules
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:07:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 89
Words: 97,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22810696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emcon/pseuds/emcon
Summary: Bat wings? Check. Superhearing? Check. A mysterious power that she has no idea how to control? Check check check.After running away from the mysterious "Facility," Willow Wren finds herself in New York City, where she makes friends with classmates Peter Parker and Ned Leeds, as well as her new roommate Marty Fields. However, after an encounter with Kilgrave and the fallout of the Battle of Sokovia, Willow finds herself at a crossroads as she begins to investigate a childhood of lost memories, all while grappling with school, keeping her powers hidden, navigating new friendships, and her never-ending quest for Dunkin' Iced Coffee.cross-posting at aka-willow.tumblr.com
Series: The Most Fantastic Chronicles of Willow Wren [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1800964
Comments: 8
Kudos: 14





	1. Day One

**Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Do you think wearing a trench coat here is suspicious?” [x](https://the-moon-dust-writings.tumblr.com/post/180121194313/writing-prompts) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)

 **Summary:** Willow prepares for her first day of the eighth grade in NYC with her roommate

 **Song:** [Gotta Get Up - Harry Nilsson](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D6jRh2PRa1tU&t=YjNiZDQ3OTAwYjg1YzQ5Yjc5YzJiNzM5ZjI3YTc0ZWRjYmMzZTg1OCxwVnZZdERPWA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F187563940067%2Fday-one&m=1)

~~—————————————————————————–~~

“I can’t believe we’re going to be late on your first day.” On the other side of the room, my roommate, Marty, stuffed books into his backpack as I tugged on a pair of jeans from the chair next to the couch I fell asleep on last night. A phrase from my dream is still stuck in my head. _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

“It’s not a huge deal,” I said. “Just hold on!”

“The F train is going to be a nightmare,” says Marty.

“Seriously, it’s not a huge deal!”

As far as roommates go, Marty wasn’t the worst, but he tended to get stressed easily and it seemed like my spacey self totally freaked him out. His dad was some rich lawyer over in Hell’s Kitchen, and after some _firm_ nudging from Jeri Hogarth, Marty and I ended up as roommates at his dad’s apartment, before even knowing each other. His dad was hardly home, and we had the run of the place most of the time.

“This is stressing me out,” Marty said finally. “I need to go fix my hair.” He disappeared into the bathroom.

I’m just glad the whole bat-wing thing didn’t freak him out. That’s fantastic, in my book.

Speaking of, I was having a _time_ trying to find an outfit that fit the dress code and managed to cover the wings. The large, sleek bat wings fit pretty easily in the crook of my back but poked out from under shirts that were too short or too tight. “Fuck,” I muttered under my breath as I tossed aside another outfit and pulled the jeans off. “ _Fuck._ ”

“Marty, what’s school gonna be like?” I called into the other room. It wasn’t just my first day of school, it was my first day of real school. Like, ever.

“I don’t know,” he yelled. “Boring, probably. Just _please_ don’t do anything weird. I have a reputation.”

“Yeah, _sure_ , you do,” I said.

I tried on another outfit, and saw, with disappointment, that the wings still stuck out of the bottom of my shirt. “God _dammit!”_ Normally, I just wore a jacket or a coat to cover them, anything long enough.

 _Bingo_.

I grabbed a coat off my stack of clothes and slung it on over myself just as Marty walked back in.

 **“Do you think wearing a trench coat there is suspicious?”** I asked.

“Jesus Christ,” said Marty. “Don’t fucking wear a _trench coat_ to high school. Oh my God. You’ll put the whole block on lockdown.”

“Okay, okay, no trench coat then,” I said waving my hands in the air. “Well, what am I supposed to do? Nothing is working.”

“What about those?” Marty asked, pointing to the dresses hanging up on the clothes rack. “You haven’t even touched those.”

“Ugh,” I said. “No way.”

“They’d cover the wings,” Marty pointed out. “Look, Jeri knows what she’s doing. Just listen to her and maybe… just _maybe_ you can get by as just a loser and not a complete social outcast.”

“That’s a high bar,” I said. “She said her goal was to keep me out of jail.” I reluctantly took the coat on and went into the bathroom to change one more time.

“This good?” I asked, sullenly, when I stepped back out. It was a red, knee-length dress with short sleeves and a belt. Converse still on my feet. “I look like a pilgrim.”

“Yeah, but a non-mutant one.”

“That’s… like mutant-phobic.”

“No it’s not—I have asthma!”

“It’s not—it’s literally not the same thing!”

Marty checked the time on his phone. “ _Shit_ , we’re so late. Are you ready?”

I took one more look at myself in the mirror next to the apartment door. My hair was still a wild mess of brown clumps, as I grew out the short hair I had at the Facility and tried to avoid the dreaded mullet. _Whatever._

“Yeah,” I said, slinging my backpack over my right shoulder. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

_Look out Midtown Middle._


	2. The American Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow makes a few new friends at school

**Words:** 652

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Kate Gray, Marty Fields

 **Prompt/Tag:** “I became a vampire so I could be mysteriously attractive and wealthy, what do you mean I look the same and I don’t have a victorian mansion? It’s been a day!” [x](https://the-moon-dust-writings.tumblr.com/post/180121194313/writing-prompts) / [@villanellesclown](https://tmblr.co/mvSTNPCAGrs71A6z_2kKRlQ)

**Song:** [oh baby - LCD Soundsystem](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dmrc1zGEPPmg&t=NTgwZmFiYTYyZmZkNDgyYzAwODJjNmU3NjFkZDM4NDI5ZTVmYTU3MCxlemdaNDk0VA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F187569534872%2Fthe-american-dream&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

Now, I expected one of two things on my first day of school (based on my study of high school movies on Marty’s dad’s Netflix):

1) With the allure of “new girl” I would become immensely popular with people falling over each other for me

2) Something completely embarrassing would happen and I would be ostracized forever

Turned out, neither of those things happened. At least to me. The school is so big that a new face really doesn’t stand out, and it takes a lot to embarrass me. So, my first day at Midtown Middle was completely typical. I think.

The guidance counselor gave me a cheat sheet of where my classes were located, which I lost within minutes of leaving for my first class. By second period, I was wandering the halls, halfheartedly looking for my next class, but mostly itching for school to end so I could go back to the apartment.

I heard her coming before I saw her: my superhearing guaranteed that. I heard the jangling of a backpack covered in pins and keychains, the soft step of ballet flats, a pen clicking in and out. She rounded the corner. “Hey, hallway girl!”

I looked up from my phone. “What?”

She had brown skin and curly red hair, freckles all over her face. And she was grinning.

“Just saying hi,” she said as she walked past me.

“Oh… uh…” I started as I fumbled for my list of classes on my phone. “Do you know where Mrs. Dern’s room is? I’m supposed to have English there.”

“Oh, yeah,” said the girl, stopping. “You new or something?”

“Yeah. I’m Willow.”

“Kate,” she responded. “Kate Gray, spelled the American way. Also, you lucked out, ‘cause I’m late to that same class.”

“For real?”

“Yeah,” she smiled. “And now I can use finding you as an excuse. Sound good?”

“Sure.”

“Pretty dress, by the way.”

“Oh, thanks. My lawyer bought it.”

Kate gives me a weird look. “Oh?”

“Nah, I’m kidding,” I laugh. “A lawyer? In this economy?”

Kate laughs too. She briefs me on our English class on our walk there. “We’re reading Dracula right now,” she says. “You read it?”

“Nah,” I say. “That’s one of the vampire ones, right?”

“Yeah,” says Kate. “ _One of them_.”

“I don’t get the whole genre,” I say, trying to sound like I have a shred of an idea of what I’m talking about. “It’s like, where are all the normal vampires? Like, what about a modern one that’s like ** _I became a vampire so I could be mysteriously attractive and wealthy, what do you mean I look the same and I don’t have a Victorian mansion? It’s been a day!_** You know?” _Oof, that was a trainwreck._

I do this thing when I’m nervous and I put on this funnyguy persona, crack bad jokes and ramble, sometimes going off on a whole bit.

But Kate doesn’t seem to mind. “Totally,” she agrees, to my surprise and relief. “It’s like… where’s the representation? Where are the regular vampires? I want a vampire who lives in a studio apartment and has student loans. I was actually just thinking the other day…” Kate goes off on a tangent that ends with “…have you ever seen _What We Do In The Shadows_?”

“Is it on Netflix?” I ask.

By the time we arrive at Mrs. Dern’s class, I’m certain I’ve made a new best friend. _Not too bad, Willow. Not too bad. Wait until Marty hears._

I eat lunch that afternoon with Kate, Marty, and some kids from the Academic Decathlon team; a few of them I recognize from my classes. I’m feeling pretty good—and even though I’m constantly shifting in my dress, making sure my wings aren’t visible, for a moment I think _this might work out._

All of that grinds to a halt in last-period biology class.


	3. Iconic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow gets into some trouble on her first day

**Words:** 767

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker

 **Prompt/Tag:** “I am what they call, iconic.” [x](https://the-moon-dust-writings.tumblr.com/post/180121194313/writing-prompts) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)

 **Song:** [Chase Me - Danger Mouse, Run The Jewels, Big Boi](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D9pi7UJHXtzs&t=NWFhMWIyZTc4YmZkODA5NjgxMWEwY2I0ODI2ZWNlYWE0ZDUxMGEwZCx5Q0JIbDFwMA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F187569653187%2Ficonic&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

“Willow, I just need a straight answer: what happened to the rat?”

“Nothing,” I said. “I swear.”

“Let’s go over the facts,” said the principal. “Your teacher says that the rat was in a cage in the back of the room at the beginning of class. Your class goes over to Mr. Harington’s room to see a co-demonstration for your labs. During that time, you asked to go back to the room—which was locked—and he gave you the key—to get your notebook. You took a considerable amount of time to get the notebook, during which someone was sent to look for you. When they arrived, you were still in the room and the rat was gone.”

“Okay…” I said. “But no one saw me steal the rat. I just couldn’t find my notebook… or the uh… classroom again. It’s my first day?”

“I’m aware of that Miss. Wren.”

“It’s a rat. In a cage.” I stated. “Why would I steal that? Where would I even have put it? Like, I’m Catholic, I would _never_ …”

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose between two fingers. “Look, Willow. I need to call your… guardian.”

“No,” I said, quickly. “Don’t do that.” _I’m pretty sure it’s Hogarth’s assistant’s number there and I really don’t need that right now,_ I thought _._ I put on my best “sad sob story kid” face. “It’s my first day and I promise nothing happened! I just couldn’t find the room—I didn’t even know we had lab rats in our class!”

The bell rung—the 2:45 end-of-the-day bell and Principal Morita closed his eyes and shook his head. “Okay. Get going, Willow. Don’t let me see you in here again.”

“Yeah, okay,” I said. “See ya.”

As soon as I was out of the office, I took off towards the top floor and one of the classrooms in the back of the building. _Hogarth would have actually killed me if I got caught doing something this stupid and he actually called her._ Our relationship was a business one: she got me set up in NYC and provided legal help, and I agreed to help her with any tasks that required powered people (as she put it). The whole “legal guardian” thing was a formality that only existed on paper until I became emancipated.

In the back of an empty classroom, I slid the window open, climbed out, and pulled myself up onto the roof, quickly and quietly.

The rat cage was still there.

“Hey buddy,” I said, sticking my fingers through the bars before opening up the cage. “You’re a smart little guy, I can tell. You don’t want to be a lab rat, do ya?”

I snuck off the roof through the access and back down into the school. As soon as I stepped through the doorway, I heard a voice from down the hall.

“Oh, a rat!” someone said.

I swiveled around. It was one of the boys from the Quiz Bowl team. “Shhh, dude, you trying to blow my cover?”

“Oh sorry… I didn’t mean to. I’m Peter Parker, by the way. Weren’t you at the lunch table today?”

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I’m here for robotics club,” he said.

“Oh, okay,” I said. “Well, you didn’t see this.”

He nodded his head and then— “Wait,” he said, confused. “What are you doing here?”

“Picking up my rat,” I said.

“Cool, okay,” said Peter, sticking his hands in his pocket. “Yeah, that’s cool.”

There was another uncomfortable silence.

“Is that the rat that was supposed to be for the biology lab?” he asked. “How did you even get it out of there?”

“ **I am what they call… iconic** ,” I said. “Got any good names for him?”

He thought for a moment and then smiled. “You should call him Ned.”

I held the greyish-brown rat into the air. “All hail King Nedward, I guess.” I slipped him into my backpack pocket. “Let’s go home, buddy. Don’t let the principal see you.”

“You’re in my Spanish class, too, I think,” said Peter suddenly. “Fourth hour?”

“Yeah,” I said, smiling. “See you then.”

And that was the end of my first day of school.


	4. Soon, My Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Marty think about what life as a vigilante would be.

**Words:** 608

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Not to be sappy, but dude, you’re a real friend, thanks for having my back.” [x](https://the-moon-dust-writings.tumblr.com/post/180121194313/writing-prompts) /

**Song:** [Soon, My Friend – M83](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DlETgmXuRbrc&t=NTI2YzYyNzQ4YTY5Zjg4NDQ4YmY0ZmM3OTZlMDI1OTg4NmE2YjIxMixvZEozUjZLVw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F187703521712%2Fsoon-my-friend&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

My favorite place in the city was the rooftop of Marty’s apartment building. I would sit, right up to the edge, and watch the cars and people below as the night wore on and the steady drone of activity flowed through the night, the sound washing up the glass buildings like waves, nearly lulling me to sleep.

But I couldn’t—wouldn’t—sleep. I was watching.

For what, I don’t know, but I liked to know what was going on, who was passing by down below. It gave me a sense of comfort to know.

On this particular night, it was close to two in the morning, the cold December air nudging its way through the folds of my jacket. I shivered and when I was sure no one could see me, I took the jacket off and let the wings out to breath, let them sit out in the night air where they belonged, before wrapping them around my frame for warmth. I could feel my pulse in them.

I heard footsteps on the roof access stairs—Marty—and I turned around just as he opened the door.

“Hey Willow,” he said. “You’re still up?”

“ _You’re_ still up?”

He smiled and stretched. “I was working. What do you think is fair blackmail?” Marty pulled out his phone and showed me a series of messages. “I was thinking a hundred.”

“Make it a hundred-fifteen,” I said. “I want to order a pizza in a few.”

Marty’s a weird kid with weird hobbies. He liked to spend time scamming creepy people on the internet, and then blackmailing them once he confessed that he was actually a fourteen-year-old internet dweeb. I used to be worried that he’d get in trouble, until Marty pointed out “What are they going to do? Report me to the police?”

“A hundred-fifteen,” Marty agreed. “I’ll let this fucker know.”

 **“Not to be sappy, but dude, you’re a real friend, thanks for having my back,”** I said.

“Just don’t order Dominos,” Marty begged me. “Get _good_ pizza. You’re in the city now.”

“Mmm,” I said, already opening the Dominos app.

He’s quiet for a few minutes, scrolling and typing on his phone, before looking up again. “Willow?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you like… ever gonna fly or whatever? With the wings I mean.”

“Dude,” I said. “You can’t just _ask_ a _mutant_ that.”

“Oh I’m—”

“I’m KIDDING,” I said. “I don’t know.”

“Do you know how?”

“Sure I do.” _I’m not so sure_. “We used to… I used to… back in Boston.”

“At the Facility, you mean?”

I prickled at the mention. “Yeah. There.”

“Like,” Marty started, and I braced myself, “These creepy dudes and the neo-Nazis and stuff I doxx on here, you could like go find them in real life. Scared straight or something.”

“Dude, _no_. I’d get my ass kicked.”

“I heard what you did on your way to NYC,” Marty said.

“Who told you?”

“Hogarth.”

“Of course she did.”

“Why not?” Marty asked. “We could team up. Find some real criminals online. Scare them straight. Turn them in to the police. It would be perfect. You already do that stuff for Hogarth, this would just be like… pro bono.” Marty then smiled. “Heh. Pro _boner_.”

I gave him the universal _what the fuck_ look. “So what, I would just find scum, fight them, turn them in? Why not just send in a tip and call it a day? New York already has heroes,” I said. “It doesn’t need me.”

“It’s called _vigilante_ justice,” said Marty.

My phone buzzed and I checked it.

“Crime calls?” Marty asked.

“Nah,” I said, getting up. “Dominos is here.”


	5. Only Once

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow goes on a joyride

**Words:** 662

**Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields

**Song:** [Take Me To Church, Live In America - Hozier](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D5GETlFmpGwY&t=ODkyMmUzZWMwNjU2ODhkZTAxNTI5YjJiOTY3ZmI0ZTdkMjNlODM5OCx2NzVCWmZPRA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F187996612522%2Fonly-once&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

“Where have you been?” Marty asked me. “You’re soaked to the bone.”

I stood in the doorway of the apartment, dripping all over the tiled floor. “I was out. Got caught in the snowstorm.” I was grinning.

“Don’t get too much water inside,” said Marty. “My dad’s coming home for the game tonight.”

“Awesome,” I said sarcastically. “Don’t make this weird.” I took off my coat and let my wings stretch, all several meters of leathery glory. I shook them a little, letting the melted snow fall off, while Marty’s mouth hung open.

“They’re wet, too,” he said.

“Uh… yeah?”

“Willow, were you _flying_?”

“I need to shower,” I said. “Changed out of these clothes.” I brush past him and head down the hallway. My heart is still pounding.

“ _Were you flying?_ ” Marty asked again. “I thought you couldn’t—or uh—wouldn’t? Did you?”

It wasn’t something I planned, but it rather just happened, because I missed the sky. I had stolen another rat, the other one that Mr. Harrington kept in his classroom. I realized Nedward needed a friend—rats get lonely on their own—and it needed to be a rat of the same sex. That’s how I ended up with Boxer Joe in my pocket, and on the run from a weekend janitor who heard me sneaking around the lab.

I got to the roof just as flakes began to fall and when I looked up at the sky, I knew what needed to happen. If I wanted to get away with Boxer Joe, I needed to reclaim the sky. I wasn’t going to let the Facility take away the one thing I actually enjoyed in all my years there.

People don’t realize how laborious flying is. How _exhausting_ it is. And what it feels like to be one with the elements. I zipped Boxer Joe into my backpack, stuffed my coat in there with him, and started running for the edge of the roof, unfolding my wings from underneath my tank top, letting them stretch through the wide arm holes I had cut into the tank, just in case. _Here they are, out in the open_. _One. Two. Three_.

Three flaps were all it took, and I was propelled up and forward, leaping into the gusts of wind as the storm front moved in. My hair whipped around my face and I struggled to hold my altitude. _I’m too close to the ground_ , I thought. _People will see me. Get out of here!_

With a few more long, heavy flaps, I cleared the buildings surrounding Midtown High, and suddenly, the sky was mine.

It had been so long, since coming to New York, that I had flown and I forgot how sweet the cold air was as I shot forward and the wind pummeled my face. I glided higher and higher, streaking through the snow, up into the dark clouds where I could no longer be seen. _Let’s see Dr. Turner do this!_

I steadied my course with my arms, letting them hang parallel to the wings and screamed as loud as I could, soaring for the first time in a long time. _This is where I’m meant to be_ , I thought. _This is what you were made for_.

“Holy shit,” said Marty. “You did it! You actually did it!”

“It’s not that big of a deal,” I said, toweling out my hair.

“It’s a huge deal,” said Marty. “You’re like an Avenger or something! My roommate is finally using her powers!”

I snorted. “Nowhere close.”

“Flight,” said Marty, ticking off on his fingers. “Super hearing. I know you can fight.”

“Add fast healing to that and you got ‘em all,” I said.

“I didn’t know about that one!”

“Dude, it’s not a huge deal,” I said. “I just went on a little snowy-day joy ride. That’s all. It’s not going to be a regular thing.” I let Boxer Joe out of my backpack, and Marty yelped at the sight of him. “It was just a one-time thing.”


	6. Dancin' Merrily

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow celebrates the holidays with her friends. 

**Words:** 865

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray, Marty Fields, Jeri Hogarth

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Are you trying to scare the mailman again? I think he is immune to our bullshit.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@dewysbride](https://tmblr.co/mdC6vk-tUCtBAV2ujWioFSw)

 **Song:** [Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DdxHL36aJvGU&t=NTcyM2VmMDY2Njk4ZGM3YjZkNmM2MjJlMjQ1YzE5NDljMGQ3MDJjOSxZZUdRZ2xjZw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189751533077%2Fdancin-merrily&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

I’ve never celebrated the holidays with anyone before. The Facility ignored birthdays and holidays, even when we pleaded with them as we got older. I have vague memories from when I was a young child, before the Facility, but nothing else. A holiday party is a first for me.

Peter, Ned, and Kate come over to celebrate and do a secret Santa swap. As _Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree_ blasts through dual speakers, Peter and I jump around the living room area, headbanging to the Christmas classic. Marty and Kate mosh nearby, while Ned is jumping on the couch.

“DECK THE HALLS WITH BALLS OF HOLLY!” I yell.

“Those aren’t even the right lyrics!” Kate yells back.

Peter and I nearly topple onto the tree before I jump onto the coffee table and continue to boogie.

“Okay, someone cut Willow off the sugar!” says Marty.

“Okay, guys, let’s do, this,” I say, climbing down. “Secret Santa time.”

“Quiet down,” says Marty. “You’re gonna make my dad yell at us.” Marty’s dad had gone into his room around seven and hadn’t been seen since.

“Okay, yeah,” I say. “True.”

We gather around the coffee table and pull out of respective gift bags. The rules were for no actually serious presents, so we were in for a treat. “Who wants to go first?” Kate asks. I’ve never done a gift exchange before, so I just sit there until Marty volunteers himself. “I’ll go,” he says, and hands a large bag to Ned. “I had you!”

Ned tears through the tissue paper and pulls out a giant, plush Doge blanket. “Oh, no way!”

Marty grins. “Thought you would like that.”

“I’m putting this on my bed,” Ned says, and wraps the blanket around him. “Dope.” He hands a bag to Kate. “I had you.”

She opens the bag and pulls out a rolled-up poster that she unrolls. “Yoo, and X-Files poster! Yes, Ned!” The amateur paranormal investigator holds up the poster in triumph. “We should watch more episodes over winter break,” she says, before handing a bag to me. “Willow, you’re up.”

My face reddens, even for a Leo this is a little too much attention for me. Don’t ask me why. I pull back the tissue paper from a rather tall bag and out comes a green umbrella, pasted on both sides with Shrek’s face.

Kate and the others burst into laughter. “I don’t know how when it rains you come to school wetter than everyone else,” she says. “You needed a fucking umbrella.”

I laugh and open up the umbrella to reveal the grinning Shrek. “Wicked,” I say, not mentioning that an umbrella won’t help when I’m late and flying to school in the rain. It’s the thought that counts, plus something I could totally rock when I’m grounded.

“Okay,” I say, “I had Peter. And this is a weird one.”

I hand him a bulky bag. “There’s two things in there,” I said. The first was a slogan tee-shirt that I had seen at a comic store, with some nerdy chemistry joke on it. I didn’t get the joke, but I knew Peter would love it. The other was an old projector I had found on the curb the other day.

“I know it’s a weird gift,” I said, “But I know you like that stuff and you could probably strip it for parts or something.”

“No, this is awesome,” he said, peering through the lens. “I could use this!”

“Dope, okay,” I said. “Phew.”

As Peter handed his gift to Marty, I heard footsteps in the hallway outside the apartment, and before the person had the chance to knock, I was already up and walking to take a peek through the peephole. _We’re not expecting anyone._

 **“Are you trying to scare the mailman again?”** Marty asked, watching me peer through the hole. **“I think he is immune to our bullshit.”**

“There’s no mailman this time of night,” said Kate. “Who is it?”

I groaned. “Awesome.”

Before she could even knock, I opened the door.

“Willow,” said Jeri Hogarth, taking a step back. “How did you—”

“I’m having a party right now,” I say. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to talk to William,” said Hogarth. “Not you. We work together. It’s not all about you.”

“Oh,” I said, and then yelled into the living room, “Marty, it’s for your dad!”

Marty’s dad steps out of his room and surveys the chaos that’s unfolded. He rubs his forehead with his fingers. “Uh, yeah, Jeri, we can meet in the study.”

“Have fun!” I yell after them, and turn back to Peter, Ned, and Kate who are still staring.

“My lawyer,” I say quickly. “Also works with Marty’s dad.”

“Wait, so why do you have a lawyer again?” Kate asks. “I’m… like… still not sure how you…”

“My parents’ lawyer,” I say, quickly. “You know… when we lost them… she helped me find a place to live. With Marty.”

“Oh,” said Kate. “Well she seems nice.”

“Nah,” I say. “She’s the worst. Let’s make some hot chocolate or something.”


	7. Dreams and Schemes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow goes out for the night and encounters a sinister figure

**Words:** 1264

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray, Kilgrave

 **Prompt/Tag:** “I’m going to ask you something and you have to answer me honestly.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)

**Song:** [Hot in the City – Billy Idol](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPinBVYKQGeM&t=YTVhNzgyNGZjM2NlYTM5ODczOWFmZDk4MzIzYmZlZTdmNjk0MTczOSxzZExDUzlDWg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F188272085717%2Fdreams-and-schemes&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

It was a chaotic Saturday night at Kate’s apartment as we lounged around her bedroom, tossing pretzel sticks at each other and passing around the bag of wine that Kate had stolen from her older brother. I sat crossed legged on the floor, scrolling through my phone and trying to find a game for us to play while squishing a ball of putty that I found on Kate’s desk.

“Kings,” I ask. “Anyone want to play that?”

“We don’t have any beer cans,” said Kate. “What’s the point? Unless you want to use Sprite.”

“You guys want to watch a movie or something?” Ned suggested. “Oo—like maybe a _really_ bad one.”

“I could do that,” I said. “When’s Peter supposed to get here?”

Ned shrugged and checked his phone. “I don’t know. He told me he got tied up with something.”

“Should we wait?” Marty asked, with his usual zero-tolerance for tardiness. “I mean, I don’t want to wait all night for him to show up and have him bail on us again.”

“I’m cool starting now,” said Kate. “I don’t want to wait either.”

“What’s taking him so long?” I asked Ned. “Dude’s literally always late.”

“Probably the subway,” said Ned. “It’s been a nightmare this week.”

While Kate opened up her laptop and pulled up Netflix, I shut my eyes and listened to the city beyond her apartment, blocks away, trying to identify every voice that I’m suddenly zero’ed in on and every beep, hum, and crash. It was like a finger on the pulse of the pavement, a background static that I could tune into when ready.

I was almost ready to snap back into reality when I heard a cry, and it cut through the rest of the fuzzy wall of sound. Close. Could have been a few blocks away at most. _You don’t have to do anything. You have no obligation to move off this floor._ But didn’t I?

“I gotta grab some air,” I said quickly, standing up. “I’ll be right back.”

“What?” said Ned. “We’re about to start the movie.”

“Start without me,” I said. “I want to buy us snacks.”

I rushed out the apartment door, clattered down the steep staircase to the street, and found myself standing on a crowded sidewalk, as New Yorkers flowed like a river around me, many of them in line for the club next door. _Focus. Where did that sound come from?_

I took a few steps in one direction and then I heard the cry again. It was more defined now. _Close. Close_. I started running, pushing past other pedestrians, the crowd thinning out, and before I knew it, I was alone. Raised voices echoed off the buildings, and I followed them to an alley, where a haggard-looking woman was pushing back against a man making a grab for her backpack. Next to the woman sat a cardboard mat and several plastic milk crates. Everything of value she had was in that backpack.

“Hey,” I called down into the alley. “What’s going on?”

The man made a final pull for the backpack and stumbled back with it when I spoke.

“He trying to take my stuff!” said the woman, gesturing wildly. “I told him I didn’t have anything.”

“Dude,” I said. “Give her the backpack back.”

In a split-second decision, the man slung the bag over his shoulder and started running down the alley towards me in an attempt to flee.

The adrenaline hit like a wall when I realized how much bigger this guy was than me, but he was gaining on me and left me with few choices. My coat fell to the ground. The wings came out, and their shadow engulphed the dark alley.

“I said, give her the backpack back.”

Now the man cried out and fell back. “Fuck, who the fuck are you? Jesus, God fuck—”

“Easy nelly,” I said.

He fumbled for something in his coat, and as I moved to grab the backpack, out came the gun.

_Aw fuck. Nice one, Willow. Really nice._

I lunged for the gun, just as he raised it. Shot fired. Miss. I clawed at his face and kicked upward, as hard as I could. I was so focused on that though, I missed the punch coming for my face and it hit my mouth straight on, splitting my lip wide open.

I may have enhanced skills, but I don’t have any enhanced resistance to pain.

“Fuck,” I yelled, and then screamed a war cry. Motherfucker was going down now.

I spun and the wings clapped him, hard, throwing him against the wall, the gun and the bag falling free. “You freak,” he said. “I’m calling the… police!” The woman scrambled to pick the bag up and I kicked the gun away.

“Get out of here,” I said to him. “And stop harassing homeless people you hoggish asshole.”

He got up and ran. I turned towards the woman, and she still had a look of horror on her face. _The wings_. I folded them back a little, but it was too late, it was too weird for her. Backpack fastened around her torso, she mumbled something and also took off running.

 _Whatever_ , I thought. _You’re welcome._ I retracted the wings and sighed, popping my headphones in for my walk back to Kate’s.

_I shouldn’t have even left. It was stupid. Stupid. I’m not cut out for this stuff. I just get hurt and it sucks._

My phone buzzed and I stopped to open the text.

_> Ned: Where did you go lol we’re still waiting_

As I texted Ned back, I suddenly became aware of a figure stopped in front of me, from behind me on the sidewalk. I looked up from my phone and a man was standing there. He motioned for me to take off my headphones. _Oh great. Please don’t be a missionary._

I graciously pulled out a single earbud. “What?”

“You should turn down that music. It’s bad for your ears.”

“Okay,” I said, and turned down the volume on Billy Idol.

“I was calling after you,” he said. “I saw what you did back there. It was _tremendous._ I’ve never seen anything like that.”

He was charismatic, over-the-top, and his voice gave me a prickly feeling on the back of my neck. But I stayed. Right there on the sidewalk. Listening. _Get out of here, Willow. Get out, get out, get out._

“What’s your name?”

“Willow. Wren.”

_Jesus, Willow, move now! Go, run!_

**“I’m going to ask you something and you have to answer me honestly,”** he said, grinning. “I saw the wings, what else do you do?”

“I’m a fast healer,” I answered. “I can fight. I can hear really well.”

“Superhearing,” he mused, drawing it out like it was a song. “I bet that comes in handy.”

“Yeah.” _Willow, you don’t EVEN tell someone about your powers! What are you doing?_

“Give me your phone number.”

I gave it to him.

“When I call you, you’ll pick up, right?”

“Right. Yeah.”

“With wings like that, you must be a flier.”

“I am.”

“Good,” he handed me an envelope. “Deliver this for me. Address is here. She’s a bit difficult to get to. Shouldn’t be hard for you though.”

I think I did it, but I’m not sure. I couldn’t remember the rest of that night.


	8. Every Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow is caught by a familiar PI

**Words:** 1176

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Jeri Hogarth, Malcolm Ducasse

 **Prompt/Tag:** “I’m going to ask you something and you have to answer me honestly.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners) / [@villanellesclown](https://tmblr.co/mvSTNPCAGrs71A6z_2kKRlQ)

 **Song:** [Over The Hill – Wax//Wane, Sleeping at Last, Philip Sheppard](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DKss6bbq3aVM&t=OGViM2FlNTc5ODI4Yzk2OGU5M2MwZjAyMjA2NzdiYTcxZjgxNTAzYix6dTVaR01NNg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F188478962727%2Fevery-step&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

“Willow Wren?”

I only need a moment to hear my name on the street—an unfamiliar voice—before I know I need to run. “ _Shit_.”

_Get out, get out!_

The woman yells after me. “Jesus, hold on!”

I dodge and swerve around the pedestrians packing the street on this Friday evening. _I knew this would happen. I’ve been out of school for three days. Or is it four? I can’t remember. Fuck Willow, go, run!_

“I’m not gonna hurt you!” the woman yells. “Just stop for a moment and—”

_I not sticking around to find out. I don’t know you. I need to go, I need to get back to—_

I run off the sidewalk and out into the street, cutting off a taxi and unleashing a chorus of honks. As I recover from the near miss, someone grabs the back of my coat and tugs me back. I thrash around, trying to get them to loosen their hold but the woman holds on tight.

“Let me go,” I scream, trying to wiggle out of my coat as she pulls me back towards the sidewalk. “Let me go!”

“You’ve been missing for five days,” she says. “People have been looking for you.”

“I’m fine,” I say. “Let me go, I’m supposed to be meeting someone and—”

“You’re not meeting anyone,” she says. “Come on, _let’s go_. I have to take you home.”

“Help!” I yell. “I’m being kidnapped by this crazy lady! I don’t know her!”

“Asshole,” she says, and grabs my hand so hard that I’m afraid she’ll break it. “We’re leaving.”

—————————————————————————–

She drags me all the way to Hogarth’s office. There, after a maze of hallways, we’re left sitting on a padded bench outside Hogarth’s office door, next to a window overlooking the city.

“Please let me go back,” I plead.

She looks over at me as she sits several feet away, on her phone. “Nope.”

I glare out the window, my leg bouncing and my fingers fidgeting with the zipper on my coat. “Who are you? How does Jeri know you?”

“Jessica Jones. PI. What are you, like, Hogarth’s charity case or something?”

I don’t respond and turn further away from her.

“Whatever,” she scoffs. “So, did you try to run away with your boyfriend or something?”

“Not a boyfriend,” I say, and then mumble “didn’t even want to go anyways.”

“Willow!” I look up to see Jeri at the end of the hallway, and based on her tone, she’s not impressed. She nods at the PI as she approaches us. “Thank you, Jessica. What was it? Where was she?”

_It’s like I’m not even here._

“Trying to meet up with some guy,” says Jessica. “Had to drag her away.”

“Not a boyfriend,” I interject.

“Yeah, when was the last time you saw him?” Jessica asks.

“Like, I don’t know. Ten hours ago?”

Jessica sighs and looks back at Jeri. “Okay cut the check,” she says, but I can tell she’s thinking about something else. “And add two hours. I’ll take her home.”

“I can go home myself,” I say. “I’m not ten.”

Jeri pauses to consider. “Have Jessica take you to the Fields apartment. That’s where she’s staying,” she explains to Jessica.

—————————————————————————–

“This isn’t the way to Marty’s apartment,” I say. “We _need_ to go to Midtown.”

“Pit stop first,” says Jessica.

“Where?”

“My apartment. So, what’s Jeri got to do with you if you’re not related?”

“She’s my lawyer,” I say.

“Why does a kid like you need a lawyer?”

“I don’t have to talk to you.”

She rolls her eyes. “And they call me anti-social.”

We arrive at her apartment and while she fiddles with a broken door, I make friends with the guy standing in the hallway, crawling along the wall. “Hey, dude,” I say. “What’s up?”

“Trying to get home,” he says.

“Me too, man, me too,” I say.

“It’s right there, Malcom,” Jessica says, without even turning around. “Next door on your right. C’mon, Willow.”

I follow her inside. “Woah.”

“I _know_ it’s a shithole.”

“I didn’t say that.”

She goes over to her desk and starts pulling out folders. “Look,” she says. “ **I’m going to ask you something and you have to answer me honestly.** Who were you going to meet?”

Something about that phrase triggers a memory, and the missing days start to come back, trickling on in, one by one. _Oh no. What did I do?_

“I can’t say.” _He told me not to tell, he told me not to tell._

“You can’t say, or he told you not to say?”

I stare at the collage of photos on her desk and my gaze lands on one in particular. I point at it.

“Is that him?” she asks.

I nod, and a lump is growing in my throat because I’m remembering everything.

“ _Shit_. What did he have you do?” she asks. “Start at the beginning.”

I shake my head and walk over to plop down on her couch.

“Hey, I need you to talk to me. Everything you did, everywhere you guys went, anything he said, especially about me, what he’s planning. _Now._ ” She strides over to where I’m sitting, fast, and for a second I think she’s going to hurt me. I flinch and pull myself further away from her.

“He made me do jobs for him,” I say quickly. “Protect him. Whatever he needed.” I start crying, big, fat, stupid tears. “And it’s like… I thought I wanted to, I really did, but it’s like, the whole time my brain was… just… screaming to get out.”

“Protect him?”

“I’m stronger than I look,” I say. “Is he going to try to find me?”

“No,” she says, firmly. “That’s not going to happen.”

I start crying harder, I can’t help myself, and Jessica crouches down in front of the couch.

“What street did you live on as a kid? The name?”

“I don’t know,” I say, sniffling in between my words.

“You don’t remember?” she asks. “When did you move here?”

“Just a few months ago.”

“Well, what street did you live on before that?”

“I don’t know the name, Jessica. I don’t, okay? I’m sorry, I can’t—”

“Hey,” she says. “Look at me. This isn’t your fault, okay?”

“Yes, it is,” I say. “I shouldn’t have talked to him that night and then I just kept going back even though I just wanted to run. You don’t know—”

“I know. Trust me. I know.” I finally meet her eyes and she’s sincere, no sarcasm, no mask. “And whatever… shit… you were in before this, it wasn’t your fault either. Say it.”

“Say what?”

“It’s not. My fault.”

I sniffle again. “It’s not my fault… then who’s fault is it?”

“It’s Kilgrave’s.”


	9. Children of God

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow recalls her first month in NYC

**Words:** 1682

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Father Jake

 **Prompt/Tag:** “I want to believe there is still some good in you.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners)

**Song:** [God Help the Outcasts – Ciara Renee, The Hunchback of Notre Dame Ensemble and Cast](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DQ-FKLdMEehA&t=YzNhYTA1YzhlMTMwYjQ5M2Q1MzgxNjI1N2FlMWVmMWE4YjFmY2E4Nix5ZGRLblFlNA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F188621053402%2Fchildren-of-god&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

When I ran away from the Facility, I didn’t have a plan beyond getting as far away as possible and not getting caught.

I spent months planning the exact day and time of my escape. A Friday evening, after the regular researchers left for the day and my siblings and I were locked down in the dormitories for the weekend. I would leave right after the check-in at midnight, giving myself four hours before they checked in again at four in the morning and noticed I was gone.

A manhunt wouldn’t be able to be mobilized until the morning, and the head researchers, many of whom traveled a long way for work each week, wouldn’t be assembled until Saturday afternoon. And by then I could be long, long gone.

The journey to New York City was the last time I flew for a while, and as I came down off the meds they fed us at the Facility, I left a trail of destruction behind me. I’m not ready to think about that again.

When I got to New York City, by Saturday evening, I was exhausted, cold, and hungry. I had no coat, no money, and the world’s thinnest sneakers on. This was where the fear set in.

 _What was I thinking_? I thought. _I shouldn’t be here. I should be back at the Facility with the others. I could be warm in bed now, breakfast on its way._

But no. That was the Facility talking. _That’s not what I want anymore. I need to be on my own. I need to breath fresh air again._

It was snowing and my shoes were already soaked through, each step I took emitting a frozen squish from my wet socks. I didn’t know the city or where I was—the last time I had been outside of the Facility, I was six years old, and I hardly remembered those times.

So I kept walking and weaving through the city, block by block, my stomach practically disintegrating itself.

I started getting desperate, checking locked doors as I passed by in the late night, trying to find just a place to sleep or to sit, somewhere out of the cold. There was one large stone building, with tall wooden doors that I finally found myself on the steps of. I tugged on these doors and pulled one of them open, giving myself just enough space to slip inside. It was a church, with a high ceiling and dim lighting, rows and rows of pews as far as I could see.

I had seen them on television, but never in real life. It was quieter than I thought, a welcome relief from the noise of the city, noise that I still wasn’t used to.

I tucked myself into a pew, ready to sleep until I heard a voice.

“Young man, is everything all right?”

I jackknifed up, my wings shaking against my back and a breath hitched in my throat. “What?”

There was a priest standing across the church near the altar. “Oh, hey it’s okay,” he said.

“Stay away,” I said. “And I’m not a boy.”

“Okay, sorry, sorry I startled you. I won’t come any closer,” said the priest. He was young, still in his twenties. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” He smiled a little. “Leave it to them to give the new guy the overnight shift.”

“Is that a thing?”

“We’re one of the only churches in the city open all night,” he said. “Someone has to be here.”

“Oh.”

“Can I get you anything?” he asked. “I’m-I’m, well, we’re really not supposed to have people sleeping here. Father Fletcher wouldn’t like it.”

“I can leave,” I said, reaching for my bag, already preparing to enter the cold again. “I’m sorry, I’m—”

“No, no, you can stay. It’s just… okay, see the pews back there? You can sleep there if you want. It’s out of the way and then you won’t get caught.”

I eyed him warily. “What’s in it for you though?”

He looked confused. “No, it’s a church. That’s what we’re here for. Look, I won’t bother you. I just want to make sure you’re safe, that’s all.”

I picked up my stuff and moved to the quieter, more out of the way row of pews. I didn’t trust him—I didn’t trust anyone at that point. I watched as he sat in the pew on the other side of the church and cracked open a book, the turning of his pages echoing in the large cathedral.

I was awake all night, too afraid to sleep in this strange place, too afraid of this young priest who I didn’t know. Around six, when he started preparing for an early morning mass, I gathered my things and slipped out the door, resolving to find a library to hide out and sleep in for the day.

However, by the end of that Sunday, as the sky darkened and public places began to close, I found myself on the steps of St. Giles Parish again. Once again, I slipped on in and lay down on one of the pews in the back. And I did it again the next night, as well.

When I returned on the fourth night, there was a folded grey blanket sitting on one of the pews, with a gym bag next to it. I approached it cautiously and unzipped it slowly. Inside, there were a pair of sneakers, as well as a worn winter jacket. And tucked into one of the sneakers, there was cash. A hundred dollars. More than I had ever seen in my life.

I heard shuffling on the other side of the church and whipped around to see the young priest stepping out onto the alter.

“Uh…” I said. “I think someone left these here. There’s money, even.”

“Those are actually a donation. Do you know anyone who could use them?”

I looked back at the blanket and the bag. “Well… maybe.”

“Take it then,” he said. “I was just going to eat my dinner. You hungry?”

“No,” I lied. “I’m good.”

Still, as he went to go eat, I tugged the blanket over me and slept for the first night in a long time.

—————————————————————————–

I spent my first month in New York City sleeping at that church, and it took two weeks before I even had my first real conversation with the young priest, whose name I learned was Father Jake.

“I don’t want to pry,” he asked one night. “But where are your parents? Is anyone worried about you?”

I shook my head.

Father Jake walked over slowly, like someone might approach a skittish animal, and sat in the pew across the aisle from mine. “Well, I’m Father Jake,” he said. “Are you sure you’re okay? How did you end up out here?”

Once again, I didn’t answer.

“I’ve been here for six months,” he said. “I wasn’t supposed to get orders this good, but I lucked out. Right place at the right time. I grew up in the neighborhood.”

“I just moved here,” I whispered.

“From where?”

“Boston.”

“I loveBoston!” said Father Jake. “Have you even been to the science museum?”

“No.” I don’t know why it was this moment I chose to trust him, but I’m glad I did. “Back before this, they called me October.”

“Is that what you want to be called?”

“No.” _What do I want to be called? I’m not October anymore, or Heckergal like my siblings at the Academy called me. I’m neither of those._ A memory bubbled up, one from long, long ago. “My dads used to call me Willow,” I said. “That was my real name.”

“Willow?”

I shut my eyes and thought hard. “Wren,” I said, finally. “My name is Willow Wren.”

“Well, Willow,” said Father Jake. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

—————————————————————————–

I spent evenings and early mornings roaming the walls of the cathedral, staring up at the stained glass windows and the statues of a woman holding a tiny baby. It was such a fancy place that I felt that I didn’t belong there. I studied the etchings on the walls and the paintings on the ceilings. Father Jake told me I could talk to God whenever I wanted, but I knew I wasn’t important enough.

But still, I cried sometimes when I thought about the choir’s hymns or when they talked about _belonging_ at service. I didn’t fit in. I didn’t belong here. I looked around at the families and elderly couples and the many others that packed in for services and knew I’d never be as good, or wanted, or deserving as they all were.

So I wandered and wandered, searching for answers, trying to see myself in the little baby born on a cold night to an unwed mother. One with powers yet to be understood. I tried to see myself in that little baby, but try as I might, I couldn’t believe.

—————————————————————————–

Exactly one month after I arrived at St. Giles, I ran into Father Jake at the library early one morning.

“Hey, kid, we need to talk. Someone came looking for you at the parish after you left this morning.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know, this man—he had a video of you from the internet. I recognized your coat.”

Shivers ran down to the base of my spine. “A video of what?”

“You. Flexing your… powers. At a grocery store outside of Boston.”

“I need to go,” I said. “Now. I’m sorry—I told you, I’m no good, I’m—”

“No, wait,” said Father Jake. “Look, I want to help you okay? But we need to get you out of the church. I have a family friend, all right? She’s a lawyer, and she’s helped out mutants before. C’mon, she’s expecting us.”

“Why are you still helping me?” I ask, trying not to cry. “Look at the video. I hurt people. Look, they—”

“I want to believe there is still some good in you.”


	10. Run It Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow checks in with Jessica Jones

**Words:** 1095

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Malcolm Ducasse

 **Prompt/Tag:** “That is such an oddly specific threat.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ) and [@autumnofdawn98](https://tmblr.co/mWmFf1OjVvVN9Lb0cmfIrpg)

 **Song:** [Giants – True Damage](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsVZpHFXcFJw&t=MjE4MTg5YWU0MDIxNWVkNzIxNDJhNGQ5NmFjNGExNGM3ZTkyYTk1NSxWVWlGcjJsYQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189466936072%2Frun-it-back&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

I pause outside the door of Alias Investigations, or, at least, what was the door of Alias Investigations. The glass window is covered with a piece of cardboard and there are still bits of glass on the floor outside.

_See, Marty, this is the kind of character your dad’s apartment needs. None of that Ikea shit._

I pause again, prepare to knock, but then back away and lean against the wall. Jessica’s neighbor, Malcolm, is outside his apartment again, hunched against the wall with his arms folded across his chest. I nod at him and he gestures upwards to the loud argument on the floor above us. “So that’s real?”

I can hear every word of it. “Yup,” I say. “They’re fighting about chicken. Salmonella.”

_I’ll just go home. I won’t bother her. Whatever. It was stupid anyways._

I pop in my headphones and crank the volume to drown out the fight. People think that superhearing means everything is loud to me. Not quite true. It’s just that the smaller sounds are magnified so that it’s hard to pay attention to what’s important and what’s not— it’s hard to filter it all out. Like that argument. Not important, but unless my music is way up, my brain treats it as if it’s equally important as Becky G.

In fact, my music is so loud, I don’t hear the argument stop, or Jessica come up right behind me and pull one of my earbuds out.

“Hey!” I exclaim, and my wings jump against the back of my long jacket.

“What are you doing here?” she asks.

I swivel to face her. “Nothing. I was just leaving.”

“Good,” she says, and walks back into her apartment slamming the door behind her.

“Have you seen my keys?” Malcolm asks me.

“Pocket?” I ask.

His hand fumbles down into his left pocket and he pulls out a set of keys. “Oh, thanks.”

“Yeah,” I say.

Alone in the hallway, I’m still stuck in place. Not wanting to knock. Not wanting to leave. _God, Willow, just make a fucking decision_.

Finally, I pull my other earbud out, letting them hang over the front of my shirt, and knock on the damn door.

“No one’s home!” I hear Jessica yell from inside.

Just to see, I push on the door and it pops open. Jessica’s sitting at her desk and she looks pissed as all hell.

“Uh… you know there’s no lock on your door?” I say. “You should… uh… get that fixed.”

“I _know_ ,” she says. “What do you want? It’s late. Don’t you have, like, school or something in the morning?”

“Yeah,” I say, “But Hogarth had me doing this thing for her and I was in the neighborhood and—”

“Sorry, Hogarth has you running her errands now?”

“Not exactly,” I say. _Most of it is just_ accidentally _hacking the right person at the right time and_ accidentally _discovering useful shit._ Before arriving at Jessica’s building, I had been Wiresharkin’ at a coffee shop down the street. “Just… hacking. Things. But it’s not like in the movies. It’s actually pretty inaccurate and it’s a lot of waiting—”

“So _that’s_ why she’s been keeping you around,” mumbles Jessica, still working as we talk.

“I want to help find Kilgrave,” I blurt out.

“What?” says Jessica, her head snapping up. “No. Willow, go home.”

“I want to help,” I say again. “Look, you’re the only person that knows what happened, who would even believe me—”

“Go home and forget it all happened.”

“I can’t just forget,” I say. “He’s still out there. That’s what all this is about, right?” I ask, gesturing around to the papers littering her floor and desk. “We need to find him.”

“There’s no _we_ ,” says Jessica. “You have _no_ idea what’s involved here.”

“ _I’m_ involved. And—and that girl, the one on the news, the one he controlled? She’s involved. Let me help—I—”

“I don’t want your help,” says Jessica. “So, leave now or I swear to God I’m going to start chucking these empties at you.”

“ **That is… such an oddly specific threat.** ” I step closer to her desk. “What are you looking for right now? Are these accident reports?”

She doesn’t answer.

“Oh!” I exclaim. “If Kilgrave went to a hospital at any point you could find out what happened to him. You could see if there were any _Kilgraves_ or John Doe’s brought in on that date and then narrow it down—”

“Willow?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you always talk this much?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Well, if you’re going to help me, I need you to do it a lot less.”

“That’s a yes, then?” You’re letting me help?” I thought I’d feel more excited or relieved, but mostly I feel dread, even though I know this is exactly what I need to do. What I’m supposed to do.

She scribbles something on a scrap of paper and hands it to me. “Hogarth said you have superhearing or something?”

_She said that? I need to be better about keeping things under wraps._

I shrug. “Nah. She’s exaggerating.”

“Whatever. I need you to start scanning police logs. Look for phrases like the ones I wrote down. Send me the ones that match.”

“Just the logs? Or the reports, too, once I know the date and time? Want me to use a scanner?”

“You know how to get that? The reports?”

_I’m gonna get in so much trouble if Hogarth finds out about this._

“Yeah,” I say, already prepping the perfect scam email. “Easily.”

She sits back down and finishes the near-empty glass on her desk. “The minute things start to get weird, though, I’m yanking you out. Got it?”

“Oh, I promise I won’t get weird.”

“I’m talking about Kilgrave,” she says.

“Oh.” I pause, getting ready to leave. And then, “Jess?”

“What?”

“Does it get easier? To forget? It’s like… my brain just keeps going through it over and over and it’s like the longer time goes on the harder the details stick… like they’ll be there forever. I thought it was supposed to be the opposite,” I say, quieter. “I thought it was supposed to fade away. And some parts do? But others just _stick_ there. Like I’ll remember them forever.” I take a breath. “Sorry.”

For a moment, it seems like she wants to ask something else, but then she shakes her head. “I won’t bullshit you. They may not fade. So you can either forget or do something—”

“—or do something about it,” I interrupt. “I guess I’m doing something about it.”


	11. Search

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow does some investigating for Jessica

**Words:** 731

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Nedward and Boxer Joe

 **Prompt/Tag:** “I was left alone for far too long, so, naturally this happened.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@ragnar-rockandroll](https://tmblr.co/msZ3X3w3bd-SVMKqOcO54Sg)

 **Song:** [Kids in America – Kim Wilde](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dr_GH6M7cUq4&t=OTJlZjIzYTFkZDI5YzhmMjdjYjIwM2UxMjYzMzEwZTI4MjVjYWM0MyxXb0tXZU1qMQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189526163322%2Fsearch&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

Dateline, Friday night. Two in the morning.

Marty’s dad is out for the weekend and while Marty is out at a party with friends, I’m living out all my home alone dreams. By that, I mean Nedward and Boxer Joe are running around out of their cages, I have eighties pop blasting, and my work for Jessica covers nearly every surface of the kitchen. I’m hopped on a six-hour Dunkin’-fueled explosion of productivity. Wings _out_. Eyes _bloodshot_. Hair _like a Who from Whoville_.

“Okay, boys,” I say, looking down at the rats. I put on my best transatlantic accent. “What should we make of this?” I turn to the stuffed elephant I have propped up on the counter. “You, sir? What are your thoughts?”

Getting the reports that Jessica asked for was even easier than I thought. Turns out, communication between the precincts I phished is haphazard at best, and most of the time I put into spoofing emails and creating _just_ the right header graphic was for nothing.

I had collected stories of odd “muggings,” where the victims found themselves handing over items because a man told them to, a break-in that wasn’t quite a break-in, strange encounters, and missing persons. It’s a lot to sort through, and I’ve already burned through two highlighters as I pull the most important pieces from each report.

 _This person was mugged by a woman. Not him. Suspect was Korean. Not him. Suspect had an Australian accent._ I pause on this one before putting it into the “maybe” pile, even though I was almost positive that Kilgrave had a British accent. _Us Americans are stupid like that._

I rub the sleep from my eyes and consult my “maybe” pile, narrowed down to seven suspicious cases. _I’ll show these to Jessica tomorrow._ I take these seven cases and pin them up on my map of NYC that I had stolen earlier in the day from a tourist trap. I can’t see any pattern between them, but I grab some glittery string that I bought earlier in the day and use it connect all the cases. Mostly because it feels like the right thing to do.

Even with the music blasting, I hear keys fumbling in the front door of the apartment, and I snap my wings in just as Marty stumbles inside.

“Jesus, what are you doing still up? What’s all of this?” Marty asks.

“ **I was left alone for far too long, so, naturally this happened** ,” I say, and turn down the music.

“What are you… this looks like some XFiles shit…” says Marty.

“Feels like it.”

“Wait, where did the elephant come from?” Marty asks. “Why do you have a stuffed elephant?” He laughs. “Is this like when we were kids and you’d put on a performance for all your stuffed animals and—”

“No,” I say. “It’s just here.”

He reaches out to pet it and I pull it away. “Don’t touch it,” I say, a little more snappish than I intend.

“Okay, jeez,” he says. “I’m going to bed. Definitely gonna be drunk still when I wake up. Bye.” He doesn’t make it to his room and falls onto the couch.

I’m still holding the elephant, and as I gather up Nedward and Boxer Joe for bed, I toss the stuffed animal back towards the backpack I arrived in New York City with. _Stupid thing. I don’t know why I even still have it. Major league baby move._

I sweep up my notes and my new conspiracy board and stuck in into the tiny guest room that’s become my own. There’s a double-sized bed in the corner, and a desk right next to it. I lay all my files on my desk and sigh, loudly. _Who am I kidding? None of these are probably Kilgrave._ With all the stuff in the news about Hope Shlottman, I’m starting to have my own doubts about his existence.

I check the locks on the front door one more time.

Marty snores loudly from the living room and I shut my door before climbing into bed, extending my wings again and letting them wrap tightly around me underneath the covers. The stuffed elephant is still staring at me from the floor and after a few minutes of feeling guilty, I get up, plop him back on my bed, get cozy again, and finally go to sleep.


	12. Keep Yourself Awake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow wanders the city late at night

**Words:** 772

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Father Jake

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Some tomfoolery is happening, I can sense it.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)

 **Song:** [Sound and Color - Alabama Shakes](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DfaG8RiaANek&t=MTEwOTkwYzRjNmFhYWI0M2QyODQ4ZDBhMTkxNzRhOWQzNTkyYWFlYiw1YWVzalBVMA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189540328267%2Fkeep-yourself-awake&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

It’s getting harder and harder to sleep.

I spend so many nights roaming the city, hoping to make myself tired but it never comes. I wander from place to place, headphones in. Just thinking.

At first, I was sitting on a fire escape across a ritzy hotel in the city. The one that Dr. Dawn Turner had been staying at. After asking at the front desk and finding out that she had gone back to Boston, not having found me, I sit out on the fire escape, blasting music and trying to decide what to do next. I was satisfied to see her gone, but something still felt wrong. And I know why.

Tonight, I was thinking about my siblings back at the Facility. There are twelve of us in total. Eleven left at the Facility. Eleven that refused to run when I did. Eleven others with powers like mine.

I slide down off the fire escape and start walking again. I originally left the apartment tonight intending to stop at Jessica and drop off my notes, but I got sidetracked, and I didn’t feel like getting yelled at this time of night.

Somehow, my feet find their way to St. Giles, where I know I’ll find Father Jake at this time of night. As usual, the church is open, and I slip in without a problem.

“Willow?” Father Jake calls. “How are you? You look better.”

“I’m good,” I say, taking off my jacket and hanging it over the back of a pew. “Just needed a place to come think for a bit. A quiet place.”

“What are you thinking about?” He sits down in the pew across the aisle from mine.

“I don’t know,” I sigh. “Boston, mostly. Lot’s of things.”

“Your siblings?”

I nod. “Them. I’ve been thinking a lot about them.”

“What, specifically?”

“Just feel bad or something. About leaving them behind. Felt selfish. But I tried to get them to come and they wouldn’t.”

“John 7:37 through 39. You know it?”

“Of course not.”

Father Jake chuckles. “On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, _Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them._ ” He pauses. “So outside Jesus words, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. You did what you could, Willow, but they had a decision to make, too, and that was whether to believe you or not. And they didn’t. But that’s not on you.”

“Are you saying that I’m Jesus in this scenario?”

Father Jake laughs. “Don’t tell God.”

“I just really miss them,” I say. “This is going to sound stupid, but… I don’t know. I miss having friends that were like me. I mean, my friends, Marty and Kate and Peter and Ned—they’re great—but I miss having friends who knew what it was like to have powers.”

Father Jake says something in response, but I’m doing that thing where I’m _watching_ him talk, but actually, my brain is traveling on the L train and my ears are listening to the street outside.

“Willow?” he asks. “Everything okay?”

I hear a lone gunshot, too far away for Father Jake to hear, but just loud enough for me. “Uh… I have to go,” I say. “ **Some tomfoolery is happening, I can sense it.** ”

“Willow!” he calls as I throw my jacket on. “Be careful, all right? I know what you do.”

“I’m always careful,” I say, glad that I have something tonight to finally distract me from my own head. “ _Always._ ”

With that, I’m running back out onto the street, listening to the chaos of the city, trying to hone in on where the gunshot may have come from.

_I need to get up into the air. Get a better view._

I know what you’re thinking. _Well, shit, you have wings. Get on it then!_

To be honest, though, I haven’t flown since that rainy evening off the roof of the school. That one time. Because here’s the thing: you fly above New York and you’ll have about three-hundred people with it on camera before you can even disappear above the clouds. I don’t like the attention it could bring. And I’m trying really, really hard to be normal.

I think part of me likes to think that if I act normal long enough, everything from my past will get the big delete button.

So I run, instead, towards the sounds of screams and confusion coming from Midtown.


	13. Come Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow pulls off a dangerous stunt and pays the consequences

**Words:** 1822

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Did I do something illegal? You bet I did! Was it fun though? Hell yeah!”[x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)

 **Song:** [Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – Elton John, Jamie Bell, Taron Egarton](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DL-7yLyFre6Y&t=ZmE3ZDNmZmZlZDY3YjM2MzFhNzA2NjkxODg4YTQxMzkwODVlYTJlYyxXVURZNXh2eg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189557153292%2Fcome-down&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

I arrive at the scene of the incident just as police are, rolling up in a motorcade of blue and red lights. _Okay, okay, what’s going on, what’s the scene, etcetera etcetera._

Two guys are bleeding out in the middle of the street, traffic is stopped, and cars have parked haphazardly around the scene. On my right, there’s a jewelry store with smashed windows. And then I spot two men stepping out of the busted-up store, and I hear the metallic click of a safety being turned off.

_Oh, this could get messy really quickly._

Most people have gotten the hint to _run_ , but others are still standing too close, phones out, recording.

“Shit, shit, shit,” I say and duck behind a closed newsstand. I pull my hood over my head, but my face is still visible. In my backpack, I find a pair of large sunglasses and white facepaint from school spirit day last week. “Fuck,” I say, and pop open the tube, smearing streaks of paint on my face before putting the sunglasses on. “Clown nation let’s rise.” It doesn’t cover my whole face but just obscures the rest of my features. _That will have to do_.

I step out from behind the newsstand and through my dimmed vision from the sunglasses, spot the men making a break for a car parked on the corner. It’s on the other side of the interaction from the police, and across from a two-building construction site.

Now, I know what you _think_ I’m going to do. Stop, those robbers, right?

But, nah. The police have that under control.

What I’m more concerned about now that I’m here are all the police cars that are unattended as the police jump out of the vehicles and hit the ground, running towards the suspects. _Oh, hell yeah._

As the action moves to the other side of the street, I make a break for the police cars and slide into the passenger seat of the first cruiser I see left open. I don’t have a lot of time, and this is a rare opportunity, so I move fast. I pull a flash drive from my backpack and stick it into the laptop in the seat next to mine. Already, the flash drive is installing a keylogger on the computer, so hopefully I can nab some credentials and _really_ start hunting through police reports.

 _Five. Four_. Just a few more seconds. _Three. Two._

“I’m on it!”

I look up and see a cop running back to the cruisers. _My_ cruiser.

“Shit,” I say, and yank the flash drive out. My arm hits up against a knob and the sirens of the car flare up. “ _Shit!”_

I jump out of the car, and immediately, the cop spots me. “Hey!” he yells. Over where the two robbers were, the police have already subdued the pair, and attention is now being drawn back to me. Other cops look up when they hear the siren, and suddenly, I have about ten different officers staring me down. _Well, that was the worst plan I’ve had today._

“Hands in the air, step away from the car!”

In a panic, I put my hands up near my head, palms out, but I’m shaking, and a new, older energy is taking over my body. One that I haven’t felt since the Facility. The wind in the intersection starts to pick up and I feel it swirling around my hands—my fingers tingling with adrenaline. With a burst of energy, I propel the wind from the palms of my hands.

There’s a crack and the roar of wind, followed by a force field extending out from where I stand, blowing away everything in my radius, razing the sidewalk clean.

Someone screams, the cops lose their footing, and I heave a breath, turning towards the skyscraper under construction. I’m cornered here. _The only way to go is up._

The wind continues to howl and rip through the street and I sprint for the doors of the tower.

“Stop!”

“She has a weapon!”

It’s no longer about the robbers. It’s about me. The mutant running wild in Midtown.

My hands close around the door handle just as a shot rings out behind me. I feel burning pain, right in the bicep of my left arm, just missing my left wing. _Those bastards shot me!_

Boot steps, the shuffling of feet, chaos behind me. I open the door and limp inside, towards the elevator. _C’mon, Willow. Like the doctors always said. Mind over matter. Mind over matter._

The elevator is taking too long, I head for the stairs, the pain in my arm refusing to subside. _You just got SHOT. How do you plan to get out of this one? There’s a BULLET in you._

The stairs are a blur, I don’t remember climbing them at all, but suddenly I’m on the roof, with nowhere else to go. I can still hear the murmuring below on the street, and as I step closer to the ledge, a crowd begins to form. More police have joined the fray below.

I shut my eyes and focus on the voices below. _Jessica? Is that Jessica?_ The voice is too mumbled to know for sure. I hear footsteps on the flights of stairs below me and I know my time is running out. There’s a steel beam that runs from the top of this skyscraper to the top of the other. The other side is not an option, though, because I hear police in that building, too.

Just as the door on the roof access door is busted open, I step out onto the beam. My arms are outstretched for balance and I carefully place one sneakered foot in front of the other.

“Stop!” one of the cops yells behind me, a woman. “You’re going to get hurt.”

Below me, I hear more sirens. Fire trucks. _Let’s hear it for the boys in yellow!_

I take another step onto the beam. And another. I’m out of arm’s reach now. The door on the other roof flies open and a few police officers flood out there as well. I take another step forward on the beam. Someone screams down on the street.

“Come on back!” a cop yells. “Kid—”

But I’m out of options. I stand, now, in the center of the beam, directly between the two buildings. Cops on both sides. I know what I need to do, and I don’t like it one bit.

My heart threatens to hammer out of my chest, and I turn to face the crowd below, feet planted next to each other on the beam.

Arms still outstretched, I let myself fall forward.

The screams—they’re everywhere. The ground. The police on the roof. The sirens. The wind roars in my ears and the lights around me blur.

 _No going back now_.

I unfurl my wings and they snap me out of freefall, sending me shooting across the intersection and upward, up, up, up. The voices change below—more screams— and I rise again, the wing gathering under my wings, my lungs sipping in the cool air as my brain still tries to play catch up. The moon is out tonight, and its light guides me as I sail on streams of air towards freedom, leaving chaos behind me.

—————————————————————————–

As I continue to fly, now out by Hell’s Kitchen, I realize I need to stop. My bullet wound is really starting to hurt now that the adrenaline is starting to wear off. I lost the police and crowds when I cut through some clouds, and now I fly alone.

I still have my backpack on, and I remember that I have Jessica’s files in there. _I guess I should stop while I’m here_.

_Mind over matter. Finish this and then get home. Have Marty help you get the bullet out._

I land on her apartment building’s roof. My smeared facepaint is still on and I pull a bottle of water out of my backpack to wash it off. After checking in my phone’s screen to make sure I got it all, I take the stairs down to her floor. It’s quiet tonight, no Malcolm in the hallway, not even an argument from the upstairs neighbor. I lift up my hoodie and see that I’ve bled through my tee-shirt underneath. _Oh, well isn’t that just the cherry on top?_

I knock and hear several footsteps before the door is yanked open.

“Hi,” I say, not waiting on a greeting I know won’t come. I’m in a lot of pain and I realize I shouldn’t have tried to cram this errand in. “I have police reports. A bunch. Pulled the interesting ones like you said.”

She takes the file from my hand and leafs through it. “Nice work.”

A wave of dizziness hits me and I feel my body sway a little. I steady myself and lean against the wall. _I need to get that bullet out so I can heal and stop the bleeding._

“New door,” I say, nodding at it. “Looks g—” Another stab of pain hits, and my face grows flushed. I’m sweating bullets now.

“What?” Jessica looks up from my notes. “You okay? You look like shit.”

“Yeah,” I say. “I just… need to sit…” My knees give out and I collapse towards the floor, just as Jessica reaches out to steady me.

“Jesus,” she says. “What happened to you?” She helps me inside and shuts her apartment door. I lay my burning arms on her cool floor and wipe sweat from my forehead.

I don’t have enough energy to look, and I point towards my shoulder. “Got shot. Is it bad?”

“You got _shot?_ ” She drops the file in her hand and races to where I am on the floor.

“ **Was I doing something illegal?** ” I say as best I can. “ **You bet I was. Was it fun though? Hell yeah.** Mostly.”

“This isn’t a joke, Willow!” She helps me pull the neck down on my baggy sweatshirt and get my left arm out to reveal a Pangea of blood on the left shoulder of my white tee-shirt. “Oh my God.”

“Can you—can you help me get the bullet out?” I ask.

“Are you serious? You need a doctor!”

“I can’t go to the hospital. Please. I’d do it myself, but I can’t reach.”

Jessica heaves a shaky sigh. “Where is it?”

“Follow the blood.”

She peels back my blood-soaked tee-shirt. “I see the hole.” Without any warning, she digs her fingers and yanks out the bullet.

I try not to, but I cry out and my wings shake involuntarily. I’m trying not to think about the consequences of everything that happened tonight.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, I got it,” says Jessica. “You need to—”

“I’m a fast healer,” I say, straining on each word, before passing out on her floor.


	14. Dead Cities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow wakes up after getting shot

**Words:** 629

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Oh, come on! Nothing says friendship like planning murder together!” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@autumnofdawn98](https://tmblr.co/mWmFf1OjVvVN9Lb0cmfIrpg)

 **Song:** [Beauties can die – M83](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DCgmrbZTV4EU&t=YjM4MzY2ZWQ5NzIxYTM4MTg1YjZiNTg1ZWZkNjMyYmMyNDA5MWY0MSxLM293TmRGdQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189638580582%2Fdead-cities&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

I wake up on the orange couch in the corner of Jessica’s apartment with a blanket draped over me and my wings wrapped tightly around my body. I sit up and shake out my wings before folding them in and then move my left arm a little. While it’s sore, I can tell it’s already on the mend. My phone is on the floor next to me and I pick it up to find it with about thirty notifications and nearly dead.

> _> Marty: Willow you were on the news are you okay?_
> 
> _> Marty: what the fuck is going on?_
> 
> _> Marty: Please pick up??_
> 
> _> Marty: WILLOW_
> 
> _> Lawyer person: Call me._
> 
> _> Ned Leeds and Peter Parker: lol look at this chemistry meme_

“Shit,” I say, and put my phone back down.

I hear footsteps and Jessica walks in from the kitchen. “Rough night, huh?”

“Yeah.”

She sighs and sits on her desk, facing me. “We need to talk.”

I sit up on the couch and pull the blanket around me. “About?”

She rolls her eyes. “Everything. How you got shot, what you were doing, all of it.”

“I—”

“You know,” she continues, “I hoped it was a coincidence and that you weren’t involved in that incident on the news last night. But when I was patching you up, I saw the—” she gestures with her hand. “You know.”

“The… the wings?”

She nods and looks away. “Yeah.”

“Are you gonna tell anyone?”

She jumps down off her desk and moves behind it, shuffling papers around. “None of my business.”

“Okay.” I stand up and start gathering my stuff. “So, what’s next?”

“What’s _next?_ No, Willow, you’re done.”

“What?”

“Are you deaf? _You’re done_.”

“No,” I protest. “I can help. Let me help—that’s what friends are for.”

“We’re not friends,” she snorts.

**“Oh, come on! Nothing says friendship like planning murder together!”**

“We’re _not_ killing him. We do that and Hope stays in prison.”

“Okay. So… then what’s the plan?”

She doesn’t answer me and instead opens her laptop and starts working.

“I did what you asked me to do and I know I got hurt and _maybe_ got some blood on your floor and I’m sorry, but you can’t just…”

“Look,” she snaps. “My friend got attacked the other night in her apartment by someone who got Kilgraved. I have someone following me and taking pictures for him. The last thing I need right now is to be worrying about another… gifted… person who we both know Kilgrave will use against me if we give him the chance.”

“Well maybe—”

“And I did some digging last night while you were passed out on my couch. Wanna tell me why you don’t appear to exist up until this summer?”

“Jessica, look, I can—”

“I’m—” she pauses. “I’m not having your death on my hands. Do you get that?”

“Fine, whatever,” I say, and I pop my earbuds in. “I’m going home.” My voice cracks slightly and I pray she doesn’t notice.

“Willow—”

“No, it’s fine. Good luck saving the world or whatever.”

“Willow wait—hold on.”

I stop in her doorway. “What?”

“You can fly, right?”

I shrug. “Yeah.”

Jessica scribbles an address down on a piece of paper and hands it to me. “My friend lives here. One of the top floors. I need you to keep an eye on her apartment for me.” She won’t make eye contact.

I take the paper. “Okay, I can do that.”

“And there’s a group that’s meeting,” she says. “Other victims of Kilgrave. Tomorrow night.”

“Oh,” I say. “That’s not really my thing.”

“Yeah, well, it’s not mine either. But in the meantime, it’s the only way I can make sure you don’t do something else stupid.”


	15. Stand or Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow runs an errand with Peter in tow

**Words:** 431

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Jessica Jones

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Listening to you two talk is honestly the most painful thing I’ve ever endured in my life.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) / [@autumnofdawn98](https://tmblr.co/mWmFf1OjVvVN9Lb0cmfIrpg)

 **Time:** March 2015

 **Song:** [Heroes and Villains – The Beach Boys](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D1YlJoGtH9lY&t=Y2FiNDA2M2RlN2ZkMWRkOWE3MmJiZGRhZjBmMGZlNzIzZDlmOGE0MSx6V3V4ZzcwVQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189892069852%2Fstand-or-fall&m=1)

—————————————————————————–

“Wait, why are we stopping here again?” Peter asks.

“My friend texted me,” I say. “Said that she needed something. It’ll be fast. I promise.”

“This place is…”

“Sketchy?” I finish. “Yeah.”

“What is going on?” Peter asks. “With you, I mean.”

My phone buzzes and when I glance at the screen, I see it’s Marty sending another tweet about me, the bat-kid seen flying over NYC after jumping from a skyscraper. I had hoped the attention would die down after a week, but it seems everyone is still talking, and it’s making me paranoid. “Everything’s fine. Trust me.”

“All right.”

I knock on the door and while we wait, I pull out my phone. “Oh my gosh, look at this MLG video that just dropped.” I play the video full blast and we’re cackling along, repeating lines from the video and watching Stuart Little’s car get blown up just as Jessica opens the door.

“ **Listening to you two talk is honestly the most painful thing I’ve ever endured in my life** ,” she says.

“Oh,” I say, scrambling to pause the video, still playing at full blast. “Uh. Hey.”

“Quickly,” says Jessica. “I don’t have a lot of time.” She ushers me inside and hands me a new address. “He’s going to be here. I need you to start tracking him for the next few days until I can get him. Every move. You have a view I don’t have.”

“What?” Peter asks. “What’s going on?”

Jessica gives me a withering look. _He doesn’t know?_

“It’s nothing,” I say. “Just someone we’re keeping an eye on.” _Crap. Bringing Peter along was a mistake._

“Willow, can I trust you to do this? Text me updates.”

“Yes, yes I can do this,” I say. “Of course.”

“I’m serious when I say this is important,” Jessica says.

“I know, I know.”

She sighs and motions towards the door. “All right. I’ll be in touch.”

Peter is still trying to get my attention as we leave the apartment. “What was that about? Are you a spy? Do you—”

“Peter,” I say, lowering my voice. “Look, I just need to take care of something, okay? She’s a friend of mine and I’m doing her a favor.”

“Who is this guy?”

“A…” I trail off. I don’t know what to tell Peter. That I’m an eighth-grade mutant with superpowers? That we have a Kilgrave problem?

“It’s a divorce,” I say quickly. “I live near where he hangs and she’s looking for dirt.”

“Oh,” says Peter as I punch the elevator button. “Can I help?”


	16. Firecracker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow gets emo about her powers + past

  * **Words:** 785
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I didn’t know that this would happen.” & “Going somewhere?” “Nowhere that concerns you.” [x ](https://ofpoemsandprompts.tumblr.com/post/161121816654/alphabet-prompts)/
  * **Timeline:** March 2015
  * **Song:** [When Will You Come Home? – M83](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DZNtvRgt3m9o&t=NDcyYjM0MWU5YmEyZmNlYjdiYzhjZWYxZDIxY2U4N2UwYjdmMDFjZiwxR01KeExkZg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189893953522%2Ffirecracker&m=1)



—————————————————————————–

I sit on the guest bed at Marty’s apartment fuming. Peter had badgered me all through lunch with questions as to what was going on, when I finally snapped and stormed out. I know I shouldn’t have—he’s one of my best friends—and though I texted him an apology twenty minutes ago, he still hasn’t responded.

_He’s probably pissed._

There’s a soft knock on my door and Marty pokes his head in. “Everything good? I heard you come home.”

“I’m fine,” I say, turning further away to face the window. “Just—I don’t know. Not even mad, really.”

Marty, knowing me well, sits down on the edge of the bed. I explain to him my dilemma with Peter. **“I didn’t know that this would happen,”** I say.

“You didn’t know… that he would be annoyed if you didn’t tell him about some secret life that you’re obviously hiding?”

“Well… yeah!” I say. “And so I texted him sorry, but he still hasn’t responded.”

“Give him more time,” says Marty.

I know Marty is trying his best, but I’m annoyed by even him. He doesn’t know what it’s like with powers like these. To be constantly on guard, constantly worried that I’ll be dragged back to the Facility. And having to juggle this life with trying to live my normal life I had dreamed of.

_I wish my siblings were here. I wish we all were together. I wish I wasn’t so alone in this._

Maybe it’s just me being cringy and emo again, but I jump off the bed, suddenly feeling like I need to explode through the roof.

 **“Going somewhere?”** Marty asks.

 **“Nowhere that concerns you** ,” I say.

“Willow—” Marty starts, but I grab my headphones and I’m out the front door before he can finish.

_And now Marty is probably mad that I just blew him off too._

I feel like a loose firecracker, out of control and seconds from destruction. The Kilgrave situation didn’t help that feeling at all. Neither did my recent media appearances.

I put my headphones in and head for the building’s roof access. It’s an overcast day, and I know where I want to go.

Up.

I run for the edge and leap off of it, spreading my wings and soaring for the clouds, breaking through into the sunny landscape of sky above it. I fly as fast as I can, my eyes watering and my skin burning from the wind. I go faster, in loops, through the clouds, divebombing and rising back up.

I think about my siblings. We weren’t blood siblings—our gene pool was too diverse for that.

I say their names, in the same order we were always called, in order of the months we were named after. We didn’t use those names, though. We used the names we gave each other.

_Gooblin. Pip. Pingu. Burr. Spark. Danny. Manny._ _Dew. Fanisimo. Me (Heckergal). France. Sabbath._

Gooblin could give people inconvenient curses that lasted for hours. Pip had visions of the future. Pingu created illusions with her mind. Burr had telekinesis and a photographic memory. Spark has superspeed and agility. Danny and Manny were twins that shapeshifted. Dew could travel through mirrors. Fanisimo was a whiz with tech. France could read others’ emotions. Sabbath could perform mimicry and project her voice in a variety of ways.

Twelve of us. Twelve powered people that didn’t exist (which, yes, caused some issues when Hogarth tried to get me enrolled in school).

When I left, the doctors were testing new powers, apparently the powers “we were meant to have all along.” The rest were just side effects.

I didn’t stick around long enough to find out what those powers were, but I had a feeling mine had something to do with the wind I had been able to summon so quickly at the tower incident.

_I still have so many questions._

_Who am I?_

_Why was I created?_

I descend and land on another rooftop. As I double over to catch my breath, I think of the Facility again and my siblings. My family.

_You can’t forget about that forever._

Watch me.

My phone buzzes and I check it. It’s from Peter.

_> Peter: No prob. I’m not mad and I’m sorry I asked so many questions. We good._

I text him back.

_> Willow: You sure? I wish I could tell you, but I can’t right now._

_> Peter: You’re good! Really. I’m sorry I pushed you. It’s your business, not mine. I’ll see you at school tw—bring your cards to lunch!_

I smile at the message, with the suspicion that Aunt May had some hand in helping him write it.

_Sometimes you’re just way too dramatic._


	17. Heroes, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow tracks down Jessica Jones to where the P.I. has Kilgrave held prisoner

  * **Words:** 859
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Kilgrave, Jeri Hogarth
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “Are you sure that’s the decision you want to make?” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/ [@dewysbride](https://tmblr.co/mdC6vk-tUCtBAV2ujWioFSw)
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [Stayin’ Alive – Bee Gees](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dz2qoihbzc3E&t=NTBiNDhmNjc1MTdhNThkZmFhM2NmMGEzZTdmN2VhYzM1MTRmMTVmOCw1c1U0c3hkOA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190093990517%2Fheroes-pt-1&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _This is part ¼ of this sequence! I had to split it up because it got too long._



—————————————————————————–

Two weeks.

That’s how long it had been since I had last seen Jessica.

I showed up at her apartment. Malcolm was there—sober. He tried to send me away, but then relented and asked me to dispose of a trash bag as far away as I could. I took it and burned it that night out on Coney Island.

_Did she kill someone? Did someone kill her?_

I called her. No reply.

I called Malcolm, again. He told me to come to the survivors’ group. That was all.

So of course, that meant I had to know what was happening. I knew it had something to do with Kilgrave. I couldn’t sit around knowing that he was still terrorizing the city—and what if Jessica was in trouble? School was on April vacation. I had all the time I needed.

Jeri Hogarth was my next lead, and that’s how I found the warehouse. She was easy to track and all I have to do is wait for a few moments before slipping in behind her. I follow her up sets of stairs and then through a set of double doors. From down the long, dark hall that turned ahead of me, I hear yelling. _Kilgrave_. The yelling turns to screaming and I suck in a breath and flatten myself against the tiled walls.

_I’m way over my head, I shouldn’t be here, this was a mistake._

_Except, I have to be here. I will see this through to the end._

“Stop, now!” Hogarth yells from down the hall.

I tune in carefully to the conversation that followed.

“This was your plan?” Hogarth asks. She seems frazzled, and I creep a little further down the hallway. _Do I want to see what she’s seeing?_

“My plan was to cut his balls off but now I’ll settle for a confession.” _Jessica. That’s Jessica._

I reach the turn in the hall and can’t move further without someone seeing me. I didn’t have a plan beyond this. I just needed answers.

As Hogarth starts rattling off with some legal mumbo-jumbo, I slide down the wall and sit, sliding one earbud in and putting on the Bee Gees. _Okay, Willow, what’s the plan now? If you leave, you can just forget about all this._

One of my sneakers squeaks on the linoleum tiles. I freeze, but Jessica and Hogarth are arguing loud enough that they don’t seem to hear. I told Marty that I was working on a school project this week. I hope that it keeps him from asking too many questions, because I don’t want him to worry. That boy already has way too much anxiety for an eighth-grader.

“I wanted to see what you had,” I hear Hogarth say.

“One juror, right? That’s all we need is one juror to believe in Kilgrave’s mind control. That’s reasonable doubt.”

“Technically. But… any video would be… would be dismissed as staged.”

A phone in the other room pings and I turn up my music as the argument turns to Hogarth’s personal life. _Jessica definitely doesn’t want me here. If Kilgrave’s in there, then I don’t want to be here either._

I get up off the floor, just as footsteps cut through my music and Jessica rounds the corner. I turn to run, just as Jessica calls out **“** **Are you sure that’s the decision you want to make?”**

 _Yup. I’m out of here_.

Her footsteps echo in the empty hall as I dash for the door, and she catches me easily just as my hand reaches out for the door. I turn to face her. “Sorry… I’m leaving.”

“Goddammit.” She sighs. “I had a feeling you’d turn up soon.”

“I’m sorry,” I say again. “But leaving. Okay?”

“No,” said Jessica. “No. I need you here. Hogarth is in there watching Kilgrave. Stay with her. Buddy system.”

“No, I—I thought you wanted me out of this, you said I was just a kid—”

“—yeah, a kid who I saw take a bullet and still manage to terrorize Forty Second. Don’t give me that bullshit.”

“So I’m in this?”

Jessica shakes her head. “Just, don’t look at him, don’t talk to him, don’t listen to him. I’ll be back in a few hours.” She steps out the door and lets it slam behind her.

_You’ve got to be kidding me._

I take slow, cautious steps down the hall, and as I round the corner, I see a glass chamber and Kilgrave slumped on the floor. My stomach drops to my feet and I freeze in the hallway. He sees me and starts yelling again. Hogarth switches off his comm and throws her hands up in disbelief. “Willow?”

I’m still frozen in the hallway, watching Kilgrave pound on the glass.

“Jessica told me to stay,” I say. I take a step towards the room. And then another. _You can do this, Willow. You have to._

I make it into the room and pull my gaze away from Kilgrave, refusing to give him any more attention. “Do you have money?” I ask. “Can we order a pizza or something? I’m starving.”

_Zero fear._


	18. Heroes, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow watches as Jessica tries to expose Kilgrave’s powers

  * **Words:** 1298
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Kilgrave, Jeri Hogarth, Trish Walker
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “Good thing I didn’t ask for your opinion.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) /
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [Sheer Heart Attack- Queen](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D3DV7AiUYMek&t=YTI4N2ZmODUwNjgxNDg4ZTkyZGZkYzJiNjM3NzQxN2VmYmFmYjc1NSxmY3dlb25IVg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190094077262%2Fheroes-pt-2&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _Part 2/4_



—————————————————————————–

I try to ignore my rumbling stomach as Hogarth takes yet another call and we wait for Jessica to return. She’s arguing with her ex now, and I roll my eyes and put my earbuds back in. I can feel Kilgrave’s eyes on me, but I refuse to make eye contact, almost as if he could control me simply on sight.

Hogarth’s call ends and I see movement out of the corner of my eye. Kilgrave is knocking on the glass and then gestures towards the intercom switch. Hogarth turns slowly and eyes it. I yank my earbuds out.

“Jessica said not to do that,” I say. “She said not to talk to him.”

“I know what she said,” Hogarth snaps and then pushes the switch anyways. “Do you need something?”

_He can’t control us through the intercom, right? Jessica wouldn’t have had it on earlier if he could. Either way, I don’t want to hear—_

“A good lawyer. Do you know one?”

My wings shake involuntarily under my shirt and I feel myself drawing further back from the glass on the other side of the room.

“I’ll get you a referral,” Hogarth says, answering Kilgrave.

“Bitches, right?”

 _Don’t take the bait, Hogarth._ I would tell her aloud, but it seems my voice is stuck in my throat. Only a panel of glass separates us from Kilgrave. _When will Jessica be back? I don’t want to be alone with him. Even if he can’t do anything. What if he broke the glass? I know he can’t, but what if?_

“Trouble with your ex,” he continues. “Wendy. Is it? Sorry, I was reading lips, could be Randy but I think not. Threatening to expose you? Sounds hideous.”

“Jessica tell you that?”

“Hardly. Jessica doesn’t let anyone in. I bet she hasn’t told you two that she moved in with me three days ago.” Kilgrave glances over at me, and I now stare back. “Hmm? Cohabitation? Under her own free will? It was going great, then she just snapped.” He starts pacing in the room. “Jessica has lied to all of us.”

Now, he focuses his full attention on me. “What do you know about her, really?”

“Enough,” I stutter out. “I know enough.”

Hogarth blinks. “More then we know about you.”

“You know her version of events,” Kilgrave says. “No one’s even heard mine.” He nods at Hogarth. “As a lawyer, you must know that the reality lies somewhere in the middle.”

“We should ignore him,” I say. “Hogarth—”

“You are clearly a smart woman,” Kilgrave interrupts. “You know that if I did have _abilities,_ they wouldn’t be inherently bad. Just imagine what someone like that could do.”

 _We know what you can do. There is no_ good _version of controlling someone against their will._ “You used them on me,” I say. “We know you have them, and you know what you use them for.”

“But, his powers of persuasion could right any wrong,” Kilgrave continues. “Make any stubborn problem … disappear.”

Hogarth starts pacing towards the room’s door and I slide off the counter I was perched on. “Don’t,” I say.

She instead stops at the camera and turns it on. “Please repeat that for the camera.”

Kilgrave falls silent.

“Don’t tell me what to do,” Hogarth murmurs, now talking to me. She scoffs. “I didn’t know I would be stuck babysitting two freaks today.”

“Hey!”

We spend hours waiting for Jessica. I eventually camp out near an outlet, charging my phone and watching Kilgrave pace the sealed room. Peter and Ned are blowing up our group chat, and Peter asks me to hang out, but I turn them down. _Can’t_ , I type. _I have something else going on. Maybe later this week?_

The door at the end of the hall opens, and all three of us in the room call out “finally” at the same time.

“What’s wrong?” Jessica asks, returning. “Did he do something? Say something?”

“Nothing that I listened too,” Hogarth says.

_False. I know you were listening._

I smell food and see Jessica holding a bag. “Yo,” I ask. “Can I have some?”

“It’s for him,” says Jessica, but she must notice the expression on my face and opens the bag to stuff a few greasy fries into my hands.

“Visiting hours at the prison are over,” says Hogarth. “I needed to talk to Hope.”

“Sorry,” says Jessica.

“No, you’re not.”

“I thought you were bringing a cop?” I ask, scarfing down the fries. I want to also ask for ketchup, but I feel like that would be pushing it.

“He needs evidence of Kilgrave’s power,” says Jessica. “I’d appreciate one of you manning the shock switch.”

I put my finger on my nose. “Not it.”

“What, you’re going in there?” Hogarth asks.

“Yeah,” says Jessica. “I know how to piss him off. When he takes control, the electricity will stop me as quickly as Kilgrave. But only hit the switch if he makes me hurt myself.”

“What if he kills you? This is a terrible idea.” I say.

“ **Good thing I didn’t ask for your opinion,** ” answers Jessica. “If he kills me, well, then we’ll have proof, won’t we?”

Hogarth makes Jessica record a testimony before going in and I watch wide-eyed. _She’s not really going to do this, is she?_

“My feet are pruning,” I hear Kilgrave say over the comm when Jessica enters the room. Jessica tosses the bag of food onto the bench and Kilgrave turns up his nose slightly. “Smells fast.”

“You’re welcome,” Jessica says.

“Are you not afraid that I’ll touch you?”

“No. Afraid I’ll touch you?” She reaches over and puts a hand near his chest. I find myself making an _ick_ face and slowly slide an earbud in, turning up the volume.

Jessica shoves him back and I flinch as he slams into the metal wall. I see Hogarth clenching her hands into fists. “Jesus.”

I turn up my music a bit more, but I can still hear Jessica yelling.

“Jessica, enough,” says Hogarth.

I pull my earbuds back out as Jessica slaps Kilgrave again.

“Stop, I’m gonna hit the switch,” says Hogarth.

“He’s not even fighting back,” I say. “He’s just…”

I’m interrupted as a blonde figure enters the room and swats Hogarth’s hand away from the switch.

“She is going to kill him,” says Hogarth.

“No she won’t, she’s holding back,” says the new person.

“Wait, who are you?” I ask.

“Trish,” she says, without looking away from the glass.

“Wait, like Trish Talks?” I ask. “How do you…”

Jessica yells something else and tosses Kilgrave against the wall like he weighs nothing. It’s only now, after knowing Jessica for almost a month, that it really hits me. _She has abilities too. OH._

Sometimes, I’m slow on the uptake.

“What’s the matter with you people? You’re just gonna let this happen?”

Now, both Trish and Hogarth flinch and look away, but I don’t. I realize that I want to see him hurt. _I’m still angry._

“He is powerless,” Hogarth says.

“He’s playing us,” says Trish.

“I will not be party to any of this,” says Hogarth, gathering her things. She snaps her fingers. “Willow, come on.”

“I’m staying,” I say, and I watch as Kilgrave yells for help. There’s a glint in my eye.

“And tell Jessica that she better keep an eye on her other psychopath,” says Hogarth lightly, glaring at me.

Blood splatters on the glass and Trish’s hand now hovers over the button. As Jessica moves to hit him again, Trish slams her hand down on the red button and there’s a buzzing sound as both of them fall. Water splashes around them, Kilgrave’s blood dyeing the water around him a light pink.

“Holy shit,” I breathe. “Holy _shit_.”


	19. Heroes, Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow reveals her past while trying to discover Kilgrave’s

  * **Words:** 1732
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Kilgrave, Trish Walker, Jeri Hogarth
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “Well, that’s tragic.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) /
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [Heroes – Peter Gabriel](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DLsvuipGq2ns&t=NGNhZTU0ODM3ZDkyYzMwMzBiZjNlOTcyNTYyZDRlYzcxNDM0NDFmMSxYNWd1UXkzYg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190094216792%2Fheroes-pt-3&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _Part ¾_



—————————————————————————–

“I’m sorry, so who are you?” Trish asks me later, as Jessica continues to rewind and replay the final moments of the fight on the camera. “And how old are you?”

“I’m Willow,” I say. “I’m in eighth grade.”

“Jesus, Jessica,” says Trish. “Why is she here?”

“Don’t let her fool you,” says Jessica. “You know the Manhattan Angel everyone was talking about? Yeah, that’s her.”

“Wait,” says Trish. “No.”

“Yup,” Jessica says dryly.

“So,” says Trish, lowering her voice. “She actually flies?”

“I’m right here,” I say.

“Sorry, Willow,” says Trish. “I mean, can you?”

I squirm at the question, and even my wings draw themselves tighter into the sides of my spine. “Yeah.”

I can tell that she wants to ask more questions, people always do, but she falls quiet. Jessica takes a swig from a bottle and replays the video yet again.

“He didn’t have to tell me to do a goddamn thing and he had all the control,” says Jessica.

“Got to admire his commitment,” I say, as we rewatch Kilgrave take hit after hit.

Jessica sighs. “Look at that.” She hits play again and scoffs. “Even I feel sorry for him. I just helped his case.” She takes another drink. “I’m such an idiot,” she says and clicks on Kilgrave’s childhood video again, like she’s turning on Netflix. Kilgrave’s eyes open.

“What if we just walked out of here right now?” Trish asks. “Locked the door and never came back. Just left him. Hope could take the deal. I have enough money to get anyone far away.”

_Yeah, you know what? I could almost be on board with that. Wait, no. Could I?_

“Trish…” Jessica starts.

“I mean it. As long as he has your attention, as long as you care, he’s in control.”

“I won’t let Hope lose twenty years of her life.”

“Why is she your responsibility?”

“That’s not you,” Jessica says. “That’s your boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend?” I ask, snapping back to the conversation at hand.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Trish says quickly. “And can you blame him? Kilgrave murdered Simpson’s buddies. He almost died.”

 _I need to find out who this Simpson guy is. Now things are interesting._ I search for Simpsons in the city on my phone. _Finally, something to do._ As Trish goes on about something with a bomb, I’m scrolling through Whitepages. The video continues to play in the background, and I try to not let the experiments on the screen send my mind back to the Facility.

“Wait, okay,” Trish says again, turning to me. “Where are your parents? Do they know you’re here? Aren’t they worried?”

I pause. “It’s complicated. I don’t actually know them? My parents?”

“What, were you abandoned?” Jessica says, and I realize she’s talking to me.

“Uh… it’s a whole thing,” I say. “I’d rather…”

“Well, we’ve got time,” says Jessica. “This asshole’s not moving.” She’s slightly drunk and Trish shakes her head.

“Leave her alone, Jess, if she doesn’t want—”

“Yeah, abandoned,” I say, wondering if I should quickly make a PowerPoint on my trauma or something. I sigh and try to think of the best way to phrase everything. “My mom… okay… I don’t know who my mom was. But she was part of some secret experiment that I think involved manipulating the DNA of embryos. But instead of giving me in like she was supposed to, she was unreliable, or something. I don’t know. So, she ditched me when she saw how messed up I came out and the homeless guy who saw her leave me said she said something about _not wanting to raise a demonchild._ Whatever that means.”

“Eh, she got that part right.”

I glare at Jessica and continue. “So homeless guy brings me to the fire station on the same block and those guys take me in. They were going to turn me into the police until they saw the… you know.” I gesture to the wings. “Two of them were married and lived in an apartment above the station. So, I lived at the firehouse. In secret.”

“You were, like, what, a firehouse dog?” Jessica asks.

I cringe. “Basically. I couldn’t leave though. After I had been there for a few days, agents from the experiment started going door to door, looking for me. That’s why they decided to keep me there. In secret. So, yeah. I was there for six years. Didn’t leave much. Didn’t go to school. But my dads were great.”

“What happened?” Trish asks. “How did you end up…?”

“Well, they found me,” I say. “Eventually.” _How do I explain this part?_ “There was a bad fire one night. All hands on deck and firefighters got trapped on the top floors. I left the station, flew in, saved the firefighters. But it got caught on camera.”

“I remember that on the news,” says Trish. “I thought they said it was a hoax.”

“Yeah, of course they did,” I say. “The Facility people came knocking the next day to take me away. And that was it. I went away for the next seven or so years. Until I got out almost a year ago.”

“God, I’m sorry,” says Trish, “That’s fucked up.”

“Eh, it is what it is,” I say, shrugging. “Things are fine now.”

“Are they still looking for you?” Jessica asks.

“Oh, definitely,” I say. “Invested way too much money and time into me and the others not to.” I pause to think again. “They were working on a second part to the experiments,” I say. “Obviously, the… wings… and the physical stuff, that’s all the embryo manipulation. But there was other stuff they were working on. Other powers.”

“What kind?” Jessica asks, looking wary.

“I don’t know,” I confess. “It involved exposure to this thing? It was blue? I don’t remember a lot of that.”

I think back to that phrase from the testing, again. _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

“Helpful,” quips Jessica.

“I know,” I say. “Totally.”

“ **Well, that’s tragic** as shit,” says Jessica. “Makes this look almost tame,” she says, nodding back at the Kilgrave video, still playing in the background.

“Nah, this almost makes me glad I didn’t know my parents,” I mumble to myself. “At least it was strangers.”

Trish shook her head, watching the video. “Who does that to their own child?”

“No one gets under a person’s skin like their parents,” Jessica says. She looked pensive. “That… could push him to the breaking point.”

“If they’re still alive,” I say.

“He thinks so,” Jessica says. “He looked for them for a long time.”

“Should’ve hired a P.I,” says Trish, and I laugh.

We start panning through the videos, pausing and analyzing. I pull over a chair and look over Jessica’s shoulder, listening, trying to hear something, anything that would indicate a location or a name. It looks more like a homegrown or school lab, not like the shiny and bright place I was raised. We spread out work into the hallways, as Kilgrave opens his food and starts each, chewing slowly and staring at us the entire time.

Trish dozes off on one of the cluttered countertops and as Jessica and I continue to work, I hear a squeaking noise on the glass, followed by a knock. I jump, and Jessica gets up to deal with Kilgrave, clearing her throat.

Exhausted, I sit down on the floor, up against the wall, and lean my head back, shutting my eyes. _What time is it? How long have we been here?_

“Who is Eric?” Jessica asks aloud, sitting back down. “His brother?”

I open one eye. “Could be another kid from the study?”

I hear her typing and I shut my eyes again, dozing off on the floor. I hear snippets of conversation, even while asleep, but most of it is hushed and scattered, although at one point I catch a halfhearted “ _She’s almost sweet when she’s asleep,_ ” which I despise. When I wake up hours later, it’s just Trish in the room.

“Where did Jessica go?” I ask.

She tells me that Jessica has a lead on Kilgrave’s parents and went to go track someone down. I sit up and rub my eyes to see Kilgrave still staring at us through the glass.

“He’s been like that for hours now,” says Trish, turning to whisper to me.

“Fuck,” I whisper.

She searches in her bag and pulls out a granola bar. “Hungry?”

I nod, taking it and tearing it open. It’s the shitty crumbly kind, but I don’t complain. She rustles around in her bag a little longer until I hear footsteps from down the hall. Hogarth has returned.

“You’re back,” says Trish, and I see her shove something into her purse.

“Jessica said she had something urgent to show me.” She looks over at me. “She’s still here?”

“Jessica will be back soon,” says Trish.

“Why don’t you both go outside and get some fresh air?” says Hogarth. “Last thing I need is another woman losing her mind.”

_Oooh. Drama._

“Yeah, I guess we could use a break,” says Trish. “Come on, Willow.”

We leave the room and take a walk to the end of the hall, where we push the doors open, clamber down the several flights of stairs and step outside for the first time in ages. I take a deep breath and suck in the fresh air. It’s nighttime, now, and the sky calls me, but I keep my feet planted to the ground.

“Sorry about… Jess making you tell us all that stuff,” says Trish suddenly. “I’m sorry that happened. To you.”

“I’m over it,” I say. “Don’t worry.”

“Would you tell someone if you weren’t okay?” Trish asks. “I mean, this stuff… it’s heavy.”

“No worse than what I’ve seen,” I say, quietly. “Trust me.” _Eh, I could probably use some therapy or whatever._

She sighs. “I just wish Jessica would get back here already.” She picks up her phone to make a call.

I pace around the lot behind the warehouse, and finally start climbing the stairs of the fire escape, onto the roof, where it’s finally safe to take off my jacket and let my wings breathe as well.

_I could just fly away, right now. Forget all of this. Run again._

But, no.

After a few minutes, I fold my wings back in and climb back down the escape, not even letting myself glide on down and enjoy the night. There’s more work to be done.


	20. Heroes, Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow sticks around as Jessica brings in Kilgrave’s parents

  * **Words:** 1533
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Kilgrave, Trish Walker, Jeri Hogarth, Oscar Clemons
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “You need to see a doctor.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) / [@dewysbride](https://tmblr.co/mdC6vk-tUCtBAV2ujWioFSw)
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [Fausta – Rupert Gregson-Williams](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DFltaJ78a1Q8&t=YjMxNDIzN2Y3MjRmOGJmZDI4MzkyMGZlZTY5ZmNjNDQzMDlkNjFjOSxjVW5wWjdyNQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190094326782%2Fheroes-pt-4&m=1)
  * **A/N:** Part 4/4



—————————————————————————–

“They’re on their way,” says Trish, calling over to me. “Let’s go.”

I run after her and we go back inside the warehouse, waiting in a side hallway as the others show up. “Are those Kilgrave’s parents?” I whisper. “And is that a police officer?”

“Detective,” says Trish, checking her phone. “Stay quiet. Jessica needs us as insurance.”

We enter the room just as the detective pulls a gun on Jessica, threatening arrest. Trish then pulls a gun on the officer.

“Holy crap,” I say. “That’s a gun.”

Jessica rolls her eyes. The detective, with his hands in the air, glances at me. “That is a _child_.”

“She’s here as back-up,” says Jessica.

“Are you insane?” Hogarth asks Jessica while Jessica handcuffs the detective to a pipe. “You know, what don’t you just cuff me right now? Because I’m about to call 911.”

“Well, then I will make sure to tell them you’re an accomplice to kidnapping.” Jessica looks back at the detective. “Keep your eyes on that man in the cell. Your testimony is going to put him away.”

I’m standing next to the detective now, who looks absolutely bewildered. While Jessica was looking for Kilgrave’s parents, I ended up running to Dunkin’ Donuts to refuel, and I continue to guzzle down the large iced coffee I bought as Jessica prepares the group.

“Now, let’s give him something to witness.”

My stomach churns and I start to think that maybe all this caffeine was a _terrible_ idea. Jessica leads Kilgrave’s parent’s through the sealed doors, and I fight every instinct to run. _There’s no good way this could end. Right? Something bad is going to happen. It has to._

My mind is splitting in a million different directions. I wonder if Kilgrave’s parents mind their feet getting wet. I wonder if I should have added more sugar to the coffee. And I wonder if Jessica really knows what she’s doing.

His parents start talking, trying to be sympathetic. I almost feel for them, but my feelings are all muddled. Kilgrave then plays the sympathy card, talking about how Jessica taught him to save people. _Bullshit._ I take another gulp of iced coffee.

“THEN WHY DID YOU LEAVE?” Kilgrave shouts and I take a step back as Jessica leans in closer, her finger on the shock switch.

_This is what we want. We need him to do something._

I eye the video camera and then pull out my own phone, silently recording below my hip. I don’t trust the video camera alone. _We have to catch this._

“Release me now and I’ll overlook the assault,” says the detective. “We’ll call it resisting arrest.”

“It’s not over yet,” Jessica says.

As Kilgrave’s mom hugs him, I suddenly hear the swish of metal and before I can call out, she lunges at Kilgrave and stabs him in the shoulder.

“Get them out now!” the detective yells.

“Not yet,” says Jessica.

Kilgrave instructs his mom to pick up the fallen scissors. The air in our room stops moving as we all hold our breath. I feel sick.

“She did it,” Jessica says.

“Did what?” asks the detective.

“It’s on tape.”

“He didn’t see it. It’s not enough,” says Trish.

“This won’t work, pull them out now!” Hogarth yells.

“Jessica…” I start.

Kilgrave’s mom turns the scissors on herself as Kilgrave whispers instructions. _Jessica, make her stop. Pull her out. She’s going to stab herself._

“Got him,” Jessica whispers and she slams down the shock switch.

It clicks twice and then there’s a buzz.

_It’s not working. Fuck—it’s not working!_

“Everybody out! Run!” Jessica yells.

“Go, go, run,” says Trish, pushing me towards the threshold.

“Get me out of these!” says the detective.

Hogarth takes off running down the hall, while Trish fumbles with the detective’s handcuffs. “Jess, the keys, I need the—”

I’m absolutely wired with energy, but I’m frozen on the spot as Jessica rushes to open up the sealed room. Kilgrave’s mother stabs herself over, and over, and over, the sound of the scissors piercing her chest thundering like a heartbeat in my ears. “Go!” Trish yells back to me.

“The keys,” I say. “Jessica put them in her bag.”

Just as I kneel down to rifle through her shoulder bag, I hear Kilgrave command his dad to stab himself as well. “No, not him, too,” says Trish.

I stand and watch in horror as Kilgrave’s father turns the tip of the scissors towards his chest. Trish pulls back out her gun and cocks it, aiming it at the glass.

“No, Trish!” I yell.

She opens fire on the glass.

I cover my ears, the sound of the shots assaulting my sensitive hearing and duck back down to the ground. One of the glass panels shatter.

“Get me out of here!” the detective yells.

 _The keys_.

I dive back toward Jessica’s bag. “I’m trying to find the keys,” I tell him. “I—”

The gun fires again and Kilgrave cries out.

_I should run. I need to run now._

_But I can’t leave these guys behind._

“Cut your heart out, dad!” Kilgrave yells, and I hear him clearly now, his voice leaving the once-sealed room and filling the small space. “Put a bullet in your skull, Patsy.”

The gun clicks. I’m still on the floor. Trish gasps as the gun fails. I look up and Kilgrave is standing above me, a hand over his bleeding shoulder, his eyes bloodshot, and his face twisted into a leering mask. “Stop Jessica, Willow.”

I turn towards Jessica, who’s still trying to stop Kilgrave’s dad, and lunge at her, suddenly back under Kilgrave’s power. I slam into her and she grunts, tossing me back into the water. I get up again and she grabs my arm, throwing me towards the metal wall. I hear a sharp crack, and my left arm suddenly seizes in pain. I blackout for a moment, and wake in the pool of water.

_Where’s Jessica? Where did she go?_

Trish is sobbing on the floor, still trying to put the bullet through herself. My arm throbs.

I stand, just as the doors at the end of the hallway open. I run for the doors and barrel into Jessica, who grabs me. I’m jittering with energy, my hands vibrating like they did in that incident a few weeks ago. _It’s that power. Kilgrave wants me to use whatever it takes to stop–_

“Hey, Willow, kiddo, snap out of it,” she says. “Whatever he told you to do—”

“I have to stop you,” I say, struggling, thrashing around, even with my broken arm. _I have to do this._

She grabs my shoulders and holds me there. “Look I’m stopped, okay? You did it. You did what he said.”

The spell is broken. _She’s right. Okay._ I stop fighting, my breath ragged, and my mind flooding with that _what-ifs_ if Kilgrave had asked me to do something else instead. I then remember the carnage left behind in the other room. “Jessica, Trish is—”

Jessica hears Trish crying now, too, and runs into the room. “Trish! Stop that. Stop that.”

“I have to put a bullet in my head,” says Trish.

I take a moment to ignore the pain in my arm and run after Jessica. When I get there, Jessica is comforting Trish. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”

The detective enters behind me, his hand bleeding and mangled. “Is anything broken?” Jessica asks us.

“Nothing that can’t be fixed,” says the detective.

“Uh…” I start. I dare to look down at my arm for the first time, and the angles are all wrong. All fucked up looking. “Shit.”

“Oh my God,” says Trish when she sees my arm. “ **You need to see a doctor.** What—how did this…?”

“Kilgrave told me to stop Jessica,” I say.

“I _told_ you to leave,” Jessica tells me. “Why did you—”

“I couldn’t leave you guys, okay?” I say. “I couldn’t.”

While the others debate whether to call an ambulance for the parents or not, and how to preserve the evidence, I pull out my phone from my pocket. The screen is cracked, and I scroll through a ton of messages from Marty before texting him back.

_> Willow: Everything is fine. I’m fine. I’m with Jessica Jones and Hogarth. I’ll explain later._

I try not to cry, but my arm hurts, and I need to get it fixed soon, before it starts healing on its own, and healing wrong. Kilgrave’s dad wakes up and they bind him with duct tape to stop him from harming himself further. Jessica heads for the door. “I’m going to find you psychotic son.”

“Jess, wait!” says Trish, running after her. “You’ll lose. I’ve seen how powerful he is now. A couple words and you’re his weapon.”

“He can’t control me anymore,” Jessica says.

“What?” I ask.

“It’s time to get realistic,” says Trish.

“No, Trish,” says Jessica. “he said _let go_ and I didn’t. I’m free.” She looks back at me. “Will you take Willow and Dad to his motel. Stay with him until the command wears off. Get… I don’t know… something to fix her arm. I’m going to find out where Kilgrave went.”


	21. I Will Not Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow tries to get some much-needed rest after the Kilgrave incident

  * **Words:** 595
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Trish Walker
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I haven’t slept in ages.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [Paris (Refuge) – All Sons & Daughters](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DhKMazNun6ro&t=NzBlMGJlOTdmYTg5NGJhYzY0NTM0Y2UyNDNkM2ZkZjBjNzgzYWE1MCwyeEYxS1V1MA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190248891567%2Fi-will-not-fear&m=1)



—————————————————————————–

I thought I could avoid going to the doctor, but Trish insisted on having me seen by one. I ended up being stuck in a clinic waiting room for hours while Trish took Kilgrave’s dad to his motel room. I tried not to think about health insurance or whatever—especially since according to the government, I don’t actually exist.

_I should really do something about that at some point._

The nurses gave me a cast I didn’t really need and said I was ready to be discharged late that night—but then wouldn’t discharge me without an adult present. Marty and his dad were on a vacation for spring break, I didn’t want to see Hogarth any time soon, and so I called Trish again. _I just want to go to sleep. **I haven’t slept in ages.**_

She dropped me off at their apartment complex and I climbed out of the car, staring up at the dark building.

“Thanks,” I said. “See ya.”

Trish rolled down the passenger window and leaned over. “Willow? Are you going to be all right? What happened today… I mean… it was a lot. For anyone.”

“Yeah,” I said. “No, I’ll be good.”

“You have someone to talk to?”

I paused. “Well, I mean, I have Nedward and Boxer Joe, so.”

“Who?”

“My rats,” I said.

Trish glanced up at the tower. “No one’s home, are they.”

“Well, no,” I said. “I mean, Marty and his dad went away for our April vacation, but I wasn’t… like… invited? Because, you know, I just live here or whatever so. But yeah, I’m just gonna probably make some cereal and watch tv or something—like go to sleep with that on—I’ll be fine.”

Trish sighed. “Willow, do you want to crash at my place while they’re gone? You shouldn’t have to be alone.”

“No, no, I’m fine,” I said. “I have my toothbrush and pajamas and stuff here, it’s just easier.”

“You could take those with you, you know. It’s safer,” she said. “No one’s getting in.”

So, that’s how I ended up crashing on Jessica’s sister’s couch for the night.

“Let me know if you need any extra blankets or anything,” she said, tossing a few at the end of the couch. “Make yourself at home. I’m going to be up for a little bit longer but I promise I’ll be quiet. Okay?”

I stood next to the couch, watching as she walked over to the counter to pour herself some water. “You want some?” she asked.

I shook my head. My wings were aching and needed to be stretched, unfolded like they normally were when I slept.

“Everything okay?” Trish asked.

“Yeah,” I said, sitting down on the couch. “It’s just… uh… I usually open my wings out when I sleep? And I just don’t want you to freak out or scream or anything. Uh…”

“I’m not going to scream,” said Trish. “Trust me, that’s the last thing to faze me these days.”

For once, I managed to sleep through the night.

I even ended up staying over the next day as well while Trish ran errands. When I got bored, I started listing all the different places I had slept overnight since running away from the Facility. _Church. Park bench. Train. Marty’s apartment. Jessica’s floor. Sleepover at Kate’s. That really comfy chair at Peter’s place. In a random warehouse. Trish’s couch._

_I really need to get my life in order._

The day took a turn for the weird when I, browsing through my access point to police files that I had gotten weeks ago, found out that there was a fire at the warehouse—the same one we had been at. _Okay, that has to be related to us, right?_

I searched more, browsing through files and Googling unfamiliar terminology.

_Body found. Shot. Police-issued bullet._

_Well, that’s definitely not good._

I texted the information to Jessica, just in case. _At least I can still be a little helpful._

I got bored on the second day, and almost texted Peter and Ned, but then I remembered that my arm was still broken, and they would ask questions and I didn’t have time for that. So, we settled on online gaming together; I told them I was sick and couldn’t hang out. I flew when it got dark, above the storm clouds that had gathered. Finally, I returned back to Trish’s apartment, landing on the ledge and trying to decide what I needed to do next.


	22. Far Behind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow sidequests onto an investigation about IGH

  * **Words:** 1258
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Trish Walker
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I locked the keys in the car.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/ [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [The Safety Dance - Men Without Hats](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D-wbQY7Hz_Ns&t=MTNkZDZiZWFmN2RmODNhYmFhYjVlMzk2NDdiZTBkN2MzY2ZiMTczNyxXQUxwbkVVZw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190321562542%2Ffar-behind&m=1)
  * **A/N:** Kilgrave arc is ending very soon uhoh



—————————————————————————–

A lot can happen in a few days and for once, lucky for me, I managed to miss most of it. On Wednesday of my spring break, I returned back to Marty’s apartment, and on Thursday morning, I get brunch with Peter and Ned, finally sucking it up and letting them see the cast. They weren’t as suspicious as I thought they would be. I told them I fell down some stairs. After, I texted Trish, hoping for some good news about Hope, or maybe she had a new attack plan against Kilgrave.

In response, I received something completely off base.

> _> Trish: Kind of random, but have you ever heard of a corporation called IGH?_
> 
> _> Willow: No? Why? Is that who was messing with Kilgrave?_

There was a slight delay before Trish responded.

> _> Trish: No, someone else. I was wondering if you happened to hear of it when you were younger. Or anything similar._
> 
> _> Willow: Oh, because I grew up in an underground lab I just happen to know about all the others?????_
> 
> _> Trish: I’m sorry that’s not how I meant for it to sound._
> 
> _> Willow: lol I’m just kidding. I might know how to find some info though. Good at that stuff._
> 
> _> Trish: I have some files if you want to look through them?_
> 
> _> Willow: Only if I can please get lunch while I’m over there :)!! Please!!_

Sometimes, I had a feeling Jessica was asking Trish to rope me in on these side quests to keep me out of trouble, but I didn’t mind. Especially if lunch was involved, and if it would help me figure out more about where I was from, or whatever organization headed the Facility.

_Somehow, this stuff always ends up being connected._

So, we worked on IGH that afternoon and I tried to not look at the giant bruise on Trish’s forehead or the fact that the place smelled strongly of bleach. I wanted in on whatever Jessica was up to, but Trish wasn’t giving me many details on what happened over the last day. Her mom stopped by at one point and I automatically jumped up when I heard the knock.

“It’s fine,” said Trish. “It’s just my mother.”

“Is she evil?” I asked.

“Not in the way you’re thinking.”

I nodded and continued to sift through Google search results on my laptop. I heard dead bodies mentioned. I put my headphones in. _It’s getting hard to keep this all straight._

Trish tossed her car keys at me. “There are a few more files in my car. Can you go get those? I’ll deal with her.”

 _Everyone has shit coming up,_ I thought. _Almost makes me grateful that Peter and Ned and Kate and Marty are a pretty drama-free bunch._

I thought about who _my_ mother was, the one who left me after I was born. Was she trying to save me when she left me? Or was she really hoping I would die there?

_Who cares, you’re still alive now._

I climbed up from Trish’s apartment, onto the roof, and took the stairs back down to her car. _Part of me thinks this is all pointless stuff. Who cares who got experimented on? It happened. It’s over._ Then again, I knew that was just me trying to justify forgetting about the Facility. Even though I couldn’t. Even though I still had my siblings there.

I was lost in thought when I finally found Trish’s car, and when I slammed the car door shut after grabbing the files, I realized I made a big mistake. The keys were still sitting on the driver’s seat, the door locked behind them.

 _Ah, shit_.

I went back up to the apartment, while Trish was still arguing with her mother. She opened the door for me immediately and I saw the other woman standing haughtily in the kitchen. “Who is she?” Trish’s mom asked. “Your ward? Seriously, Patsy?”

“Did you get them?” Trish asked, ignoring her mom.

“Yeah,” I said, handing them to her. “But **I kinda locked the keys in the car**. Sorry.”

After a brief argument that I tuned out with more music, Trish’s mom left. I pulled out an earbud. “Another win for orphans I guess.”

Trish smiled, just a little. “You got that music on all the time?”

I nodded. “Yeah. Helps with the—” I motioned around me. “You know. Everything else. Kilgrave hated it, made me cut up my old headphones since I couldn’t always hear him, which sucked because they were brand new and…”

“Huh,” said Trish, picking up her phone. “I’ll have to tell Jessica to take a page from your playbook.”

 _I had a good idea?! Awesome._ “Just tell her not to use her favorite pair.”

“She wants us to meet her in a bit, if that’s okay.”

I checked the time. “What about lunch?”

Trish sighed. “Right. Yeah. We should eat.”

When we got to the car, I remembered the keys locked inside. “Crap, I’m sorry.” The window was cracked just a little, but not enough to reach in and grab them.

“Hold on,” said Trish, “we can fix this, let me just call—”

I stared at the keys, sitting on the seat, tantalizingly close. _I don’t want to wait to get a coat hanger or a car service._

It reminded me of a test we did back at the Facility, but one that felt more like a party trick than anything else. _Great, I’m gonna have to tap into those wind powers again, huh?_

Not my favorite move. It always left me feeling drained.

But I was hungry. So I focus on the keys and put my hands to the small crack in the window. I pictured the air moving under the keys in a burst, enough to push them up over the window. It was a tough maneuver, but I had done it before.

I shut my eyes and flung a sharp wind under the keys, catching the key tags just right. They jumped up into the air, but then fell back down before I could catch them.

“Did you do that?” Trish asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “Wait, hold on.”

I tried a second and third time, but the keys didn’t jump high enough. Finally, on the fourth try, they jumped up to the window crack and I grabbed the keyring with my pinky before pulling them through.

“Got ‘em,” I said. “Sorry. For locking them in the first place.”

“How…” Trish started, but I shook my head and got in the passenger seat.

We drove in silence to a cafe near Jessica’s place and when I got there, I ordered my usual: root beer, fries, and mustard.

“What else can you do?” Trish asked me in a low voice from across the table. “I mean, you can fly, right?”

“Yeah,” I said. “And the wind thing that you saw. The flying is more fun, especially if you start messing with airspace. But I mostly just do pranks with the wind one, which can actually be really funny if—”

“You could use your abilities for something more useful,” Trish said.

I shrugged. “I do.”

“I mean, you could do some really amazing things someday,” she said. “If you trained…”

 _I’ve already been down this route._ “Screw training.”

“What about… I don’t know… the Avengers or something?”

“I don’t think they recruit. Would they? Do you think?”

Trish’s phone buzzed and I saw Jessica’s name come up on the screen. “Just something to think about, kiddo,” she said, picking up the phone.


	23. The Bright Blue Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final showdown with Kilgrave

  * **Words:** 805
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Trish Walker, Jessica Jones, Kilgrave
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I’m bulletproof…but please, don’t shoot me.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/ [@ragnar-rockandroll](https://tmblr.co/msZ3X3w3bd-SVMKqOcO54Sg)
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:** [Sweet Child O’ Mine - Guns N’ Roses](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DoMfMUfgjiLg&t=NjVkNDZiZTc0MzcwZjU4MDQ0NGFhNWE3YTIzMGU0NGNjOWM5ODMzZixXTXdJTzRyYg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190332397047%2Fthe-bright-blue-sky&m=1)
  * **A/N:** Sweet Child O’ Mine; loud enough to drown out any psychopath ;).



—————————————————————————–

“I’m backup?” I asked.

“Just… don’t mess around,” said Jessica. “Keep your headphones on—”

“—I’m pretty good at that—”

“And try not to get shot. If anyone confronts you, tell them—”

“ **I’m bulletproof…but please, don’t shoot me.** ”

Jessica rolls her eyes and looks at Trish. “She’s not bulletproof. Don’t listen to her. Willow, I need you to be my eyes up there. Can you do that?”

“Yes, yes I can do that,” I say. “No, I’m good. No joking around, I get it.” The humor was more of a nervous tick than anything else, and right now I felt like I was about to throw up.

“All right,” Jessica sighed. “Get going.”

The shipyard was filled with people, and while I didn’t hear the gunshots from inside the terminal, I saw the pops of light from inside. _Shit, Jessica. This is looking really bad. Who are these people?_

I texted her a picture.

My headphones blared a playlist I made especially for the occasion, the loudest, most hardcore songs I had in my library, fresh out of the eighties.

I saw Jessica and Trish emerge from the building and I silently swooped almost straight down to meet them. Everyone in the shipyard was standing in a formation, all facing us. They looked like regular people—people Kilgrave probably pulled off the street. _Not good._ Jessica motioned to our headphones, and then down at the ground. _Don’t listen to him. Don’t make eye contact with him._

We snuck forward, and I saw Kilgrave turn around as he stood on the dock. I don’t know what he said, but all the people in the shipyard suddenly broke out into a fight, and they were going for each other’s throats. _Did he tell them to kill each other?!_

As Jessica continued towards Kilgrave, Trish and I ran into the fight, not even quite thinking, just pulling people away from each other. I held my still-casted arm close to my chest. Fists and improvised weapons were being flung around, and I gasped for breath as someone took a blow for my kneecaps. That brought me down _fast_ and my right knee throbbed like there was no tomorrow. _Crap, crap, craparoni._

Just then, the fighting stopped.

Forgetting what Jessica said, I jerked my gaze upward and saw that Jessica had made it to Kilgrave. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but she wasn’t moving. _Jessica, go!_

And then Trish walked towards Kilgrave and she wasn’t wearing her headphones. _Something’s wrong, something’s gone wrong._ I reached up, slowly, and paused my music. Earbuds still in, a trick I used to eavesdrop on strangers.

Trish was stuck by Kilgrave’s side, he made her kiss him. Jessica wasn’t moving. _Oh god, did we fail? Do I run? Fight?_

_Or do I trust Jessica? Is this part of the plan? Does she know what she’s doing?_

The shipyard was eerily quiet, I could hear the wind over the water.

_Shit, Willow._

I tried to make myself smaller, I didn’t want to be next, and Kilgrave started moving towards Jessica now. I turned my music back on. I didn’t want to be next.

Suddenly, Jessica grabbed him by the throat. I ripped my earbuds out just in time to hear his neck crack and see Kilgrave fall to the ground, dead.

—————————————————————————–

Trish and I picked Jessica up from the police station the next morning. I had never seen the sky that blue since I left the Facility. It was a Saturday. I had one day left of April vacation. I texted Peter and Ned. Marty was on his way home. Kate wanted to hang out.

I didn’t know what to do or say when Jessica got out. Trish gave her a hug, and then I ran over, too, because for once in my life, I didn’t know what to say. No jokes, no paragraphs of rambling thoughts. Just gratitude that this was all over and for the first time in my life, I had found two actual real-life adults who I could trust wholeheartedly.

Trish dropped me off at Marty’s apartment on the way. “Guess you’ll have to find a real extracurricular now that this is all over,” she said as I got out.

“Yeah,” I said. “I think I want to be a PI.”

I knew Jessica would say no, that the Kilgrave incident was only an exception, and I didn’t wait for an answer as I walked inside. But I got one, three hours later.

> >Jessica: Trish thinks you should help out. Use your powers for good or whatever.
> 
> >Willow: Like help you with PI stuff?!!
> 
> >Jessica: Yes. This is unpaid FWI because I’m broke.
> 
> >Willow: SWEET. Can I come by after school on Monday?
> 
> >Jessica: Sure. Whatever will get Trish to stop bugging me. See you then.


	24. Free

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow returns to school after April break

  * **Words:** 411
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “You’re a nerd.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/ @dewysbride
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:**[Easy - The Commodores](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D7XcTyEKSnYg&t=OTcyZGYyNzA5MTQ1NmE2ZTA0OGZmOTRhNzk1ZTNkZjYzZTE3ZGZlOSxDSkQ2aDVQTQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190335435212%2Ffree&m=1)
  * **A/N:** :)



—————————————————————————–

Compared to April Vacation, I was almost relieved to go back to school on Monday after the Kilgrave incident. Marty and his dad were finally home, and we went to get breakfast before we hopped on the train to school. In fact, we still ended up being early to school, which was a huge win for us, considering I was almost always late.

“Hey!” Peter said, seeing Marty and me in the hall that morning. “How’s your arm, Willow?”

“It’s mostly healed,” I say.

“That fast?”

“Wasn’t a full break.”

“She fell down some stairs,” Peter explained to Marty.

“Yeah, I heard,” he said, though I wasn’t quite sure he believed the lie.

“Hey, Marty, welcome back!” Ned called from down the hall. “Hey Peter! Hey Willow! Yo, did you guys see the new Star Wars trailer?”

“ **You guys are nerds** ,” said Marty, and he waved to his friends from the soccer team down the hall. “I’ll see you all later.”

Peter, Ned, and I walked to Spanish class together, discussing the new trailer for _The Force Awakens_ and catching up on the rest of our spring break. I remembered that Jessica was letting me help out after school, and it was hard to contain my grin as we got to class.

“Woooo, happy four-twenty!” someone in our class yelled out as we were taking our seats, and they were shushed by the teacher. We spent the class doing some sort of Spanish interview game that involved the Avengers, and for the first time in a long time, I was able to focus at school. Mostly.

Right near the end of class, I heard someone biting into baby carrots and the sound reminded me of the sound Kilgrave’s neck made when Jessica snapped it. Although, it didn’t bother me as much as I thought it would. The violence wouldn’t give me nightmares now that it was all over, but I knew Kilgrave still would.

“Hey, Earth to Willow,” said Kate. “It’s your turn.”

I looked down at the script while Peter, Kate, and Ned waited for me to respond. “Sorry, where are we?”

“Donde estamos,” the teacher corrected me as she walked by me.

Kate pointed to my line.

“Right, bueno,” I said. “Yo soy Ironman… y estoy un narcisista.”

“No, no, that’s not the line,” said Kate.

“It’s called improvising,” I said.

She let it slide, and the skit continued. And I started to settle back into my last few months of eighth grade.


	25. Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow starts to consider her past

  * **Words:** 952
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Ned Leeds, Peter Parker
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I lost our baby.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/ [@ragnar-rockandroll](https://tmblr.co/msZ3X3w3bd-SVMKqOcO54Sg)
  * **Timeline:** April 2015
  * **Song:**[I’m Still Here - Sia](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DJrgbjk45lFA&t=YjU4NzQwNmU5ZWI4MTE2MTRjNDljODJkYWE4ODdjZmQyZjczOTQ0ZSx2aENEdlRqZA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190359941812%2Flost&m=1)
  * **A/N:** :)



—————————————————————————–

“Ned, Ned, I need your help,” I said the minute I found him at school that Thursday morning.

“What, what’s going on?” he asked.

“ **I lost our baby**.”

“How did you lose an entire _egg_?”

It had been an assignment for health class—we were paired up and each given an egg to take care of for three days. Wednesday night had been my night to take care of the egg, and somehow, I had lost it between last night and this morning. It was supposed to discourage teen pregnancy or something, and it basically guaranteed I would _never_ have kids. I couldn’t even keep an egg alive for one evening.

“I’m panicking here, Ned. I’m so sorry, dude.”

“Okay,” said Ned. “We have, like, three hours until class. Where can we get an egg before that?”

“You mean we’re gonna kidnap another baby and pass it off as ours?”

“It’s an _egg_. We just need to find a regular egg. How hard could it be?”

“Now _this_ is an Avengers-level threat,” I said, quoting the common catchphrase whenever anyone in our class encountered a minor difficulty. “Bingo, wait, Ned, I got it.”

“What?”

“I’ll sneak out of school during lunch. Go to the bodega a block from here. Buy a single egg. Come back.”

“You can pull that off?”

“Sure.” _It’s going to require some maneuvering, but I can get it done._

We stuck together for the rest of the morning, waiting for the perfect chance for me to sneak out and get the egg. In between, we had science class with Peter, and we spent most of the time goofing around after we finished our lab early. At the same time, all the baby talk this morning plus the IGH investigation earlier in the week got me thinking about where _I_ came from. I knew it was a can of worms, but I couldn’t stop wondering. _Who ran the Facility? What were they working on? What gave us those extra powers? What are they up to now? And where did I come from?_

“What do you guys know about the Avengers?” I asked Peter and Ned suddenly, interrupting their debate about the homework assignment.

“What?” Peter asked. “I mean, they saved our city like three years ago. That was _awesome_.”

“They kind of destroyed it though, dude,” Ned pointed out. “My aunt had to move in with us because her apartment got taken out by some aliens or whatever.”

“Right,” I said, “but where did they come from? How are they… like that?” Growing up at the Facility, we had idolized the Avengers after the Battle of New York, even when the staff chastised us for it. I remember Pip making a Captain America shield out of cardboard he snuck out of the recycling. They were the only powered people I knew of besides Jessica, Kilgrave, and my siblings, and beyond the IGH lead, I didn’t have much.

“No idea,” said Ned. “Yo, I got slippers that look like the green guy’s feet though.”

“Why you asking?” Peter asked me.

“Just thinking,” I said. The bell rang, and we headed into lunch block. “All right, Ned, I’m going to go get that egg.”

“Ten-four,” said Ned. “Good luck.” He gave me a sloppy salute.

Sneaking out of the school was the easy part, getting to the bodega and back before lunch block ended was the hard part. _This would go so much faster if I could fly_.

I think the toughest part about the Facility is the missing memories. Entire weeks were gone there, entire chunks of my childhood. It seemed that the longer I was away, the hazier the useful memories were, and all I was left with the traumatic ones. _Stupid idiot brain._ I knew the Facility was in—or at least near—Boston, because that’s where I was when I escaped. Except, I knew that we moved once, when I was young, from another state, and I knew I was most likely born in a third city. So, whoever controlled the Facility had ties in at least three places, three states.

I got to the bodega and smiled at the guy behind the counter. “Could I just get one egg?”

He shook his head and pointed to the fridges. “Smallest is six.”

“But I only need one?”

“Six.”

I emptied out my pockets and scraped together the two dollars for a carton of eggs before dashing back to the school. And even though I was on my egg mission, my brain was still in Boston. I needed something, a word, anything, but it was like my brain was locking me off from anything useful again. _Is there a reason it took me this long to start investigating?_

I remembered the blue glowing thing that the Facility used in the later experiments, right around the time we were nine or ten. That stood out. Dr. Dawn Turner called us “her little miracles.” I remember lots and lots of training, honing our powers, and experiments. I remember right at the end, right before I left, where things started getting weird and highkey brainwash-y. The program changed, and I left.

_October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

I snuck back into the school and plopped the carton of eggs down on the lunch table, with still a few minutes left in lunch. “Got ‘em!”

“Yes!” said Ned. “Mission accomplished.”

“Looks like our baby had a bunch of clones,” I said. “Bet we could sell all the rest to people who also botched the assignment.”

“I’m just… how do you lose an _entire egg_?” Peter asked.

“I don’t know,” I said. “My mom misplaced an entire baby.”

“Wait what?”

“Kidding!” I said.

We laugh and start for health class, egg babies ready. I realize, that in all the energy I spent trying to remember the Facility, I forgot that I left our original egg in the fridge last night. _He’s definitely scrambled by now. Oopsie._


	26. Ready Or Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Marty hear about Sokovia and Willow has a startling breakthrough about her powers.

  * **Words:** 976
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I feel like I can’t breathe.” “I had a bad dream again.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/ 
  * **Timeline:** May 2015
  * **Song:**[The Moth & the Flame - Les Deux Love Orchestra](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D5uQfqKYNPHo&t=ZDk0YWU4NDEyMTBhYzk5Mzk1ODUzMDEzZDhjOWUzMjdkZjEwNmM4YyxYbDV5ZXZBYg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190619551852%2Fready-or-not&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _Now I can start getting into some more cool power stuff yay_



—————————————————————————–

“Hey, what are you doing up so early?” says Marty, groggily, when I knock on his door around six in the morning. “We don’t have to be up for school for like another thirty minutes.”

“ **I had a bad dream again** ,” I say. “Sorry. Uh… I just didn’t want to be alone in the guest room.” I sit down on the clothes-covered chair in the corner of his room. “I’ll be quiet.”

“But are you okay?” Marty asks.

I take a deep, shaky breath. “Honestly, **I still feel like I can’t breathe.** But I’ll be fine.”

“What was it about?”

 _It was about the Facility. About when we got our new powers._ In the kitchen, I hear Marty’s dad getting ready for work, and the news blaring over a sizzling pan.

“It was about Boston.”

Marty knows what that means, and he doesn’t ask any more questions. “You left my door open,” he says.

“It’s a crack—it’s just opened a crack.”

“Yeah and my dad is being super loud.”

I sigh and concentrate, pulling the moving air from the vents above Marty’s bed. With a flick of my fingers, a blue glow amasses on the back of the door and pushes it shut.

“Seriously?” he asks.

“I’m too tired to get back up.”

“Why don’t you use _those_ powers for something useful?” Marty grumbles. “That’s the cool stuff.”

 _Because I don’t know how to control it beyond party tricks. And based on the tests at the Facility, I know how destructive it can be._ It’s times like these where I wish, more than anything, I had contact with my siblings from the Facility. Or anyone who understood what this was like. _It’s a power I don’t understand. Hell, there were two hundred kids before they started experimenting with that stuff. Why did it kill them and not me and my siblings?_

Ever since I started helping Trish with the IGH stuff, more and more memories are coming back, and I’m not sure I want them all to come back.

Marty’s phone starts ringing while I’m still thinking, and he frowns and picks it up. “Hey, Annabel? What? What do you mean? Look, I’m sure she’s okay, look—”

I make a face. _Annabel?_

Marty motions to me. “Turn on the news,” he says.

“It’s on in the kitchen,” I say. “What’s going on?”

Marty jumps out of bed and swings his door open. “Dad, is that the news?”

His dad is already standing in front of the television, staring at the screen as he sips on a cup of scalding hot coffee. “Well isn’t this something else.”

I can hardly make on anything from the destruction on the screen. “Where is this?” I ask. There’s rubble everywhere, blasts shooting across the screen, the shaky footage looking like it’s being shot on a cell phone camera.

“Sokovia,” says Marty. He points to his phone. “That’s where her mom is.”

“Holy crap,” I say. “Who—what’s going on?”

“Dad, what is this?” Marty asks. “Annabel—can I call you back? On my way to school? Please, just give me ten minutes.”

“Not sure,” says his dad. “They were reporting earthquakes earlier. The Avengers are there, though.”

The news cuts footage, and sure enough, I see Captain America directing civilians towards airships. “Why does it look like it’s so high up?” I ask. “Where is Sokovia again?”

“Near Ukraine,” Marty reminds me.

Marty’s dad turns back to the stove and finishes cooking his eggs. “Marty, shouldn’t you be getting ready for school?”

 _I’m here too,_ I think.

The news plays a few more clips shot from cell phone cameras, and suddenly, something strange catches my eye.

“Wait, go back,” I say to Marty.

“You saw that, too?” he asks. “I’m doing it, hold on.”

He scrolls about ten seconds back and he pauses it at the same moment I noticed. There’s a woman surrounded by red energy, wielding it, almost like—

“That’s like what you do,” Marty whispers. “Do you know her? Is that one your—”

My mouth sits open. “No, no,” I say. “Too old. But…”

“What’s this?” Marty’s dad asks, turning back around. “Put it live, I want to switch to Fox and Friends before I leave.”

Marty stifles a groan and we go back to his room, rigged to explode. “Can you do it now?” Marty asks. “The glowy thing?”

I roll my eyes and hold out my hands, once again drawing from the moving air through the apartment to create the blue ball of energy. “This?”

“That’s exactly it,” says Marty. “Holy crap, dude.”

“Who is she?” I ask. “Did they say? Is she an Avenger?”

“No idea,” says Marty. “I didn’t hear. But do you think…?”

“I don’t know,” I say, suddenly, as the choking, panicked feeling starts to come back, just like when I woke up. “I don’t—it’s whatever. I don’t even care. I’m gonna go get ready.”

“Don’t you want to…?” Marty starts, but when he sees the expression on my face, he changes the topic. “All right. I’m gonna call Annabel back.”

I stumble back into the guest room and sit down on the bed, my heart pounding. All of this—it’s too much. Sokovia, people with powers like mine, the IGH investigation. I know where it all leads; I have to return to the Facility. _I have to get answers._

I just don’t like that solution.

And what if I don’t like the answers I get?

My phone starts blowing up with news notifications about Sokovia and I turn on _do not disturb_ before getting dressed and putting together an outfit that will hide the wings especially well today.

_First things first. I need to know more about these powers. And then find my siblings. And then find out whose behind all of this. In that order. Because, ready or not, this will all catch up to me._


	27. Listen To The Radio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow starts to form a plan

  * **Words:** 362
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Ned Leeds, Peter Parker
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “That’s starting to get annoying.” [x ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)/
  * **Timeline:** May 2015
  * **Song:**[We Built This City - Starship](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DBsCBGsKSW4g&t=YTk5NmMzZDEwY2U3NThjOTk4NjZjZmFjMDQ4NTRkZWM4YzczZmY3MixCWktnaDRzSA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190746976632%2Flisten-to-the-radio&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _uh on sisters…_



—————————————————————————–

“So, Annabel?” I asked Marty on our way to school. “Who is she?”

“Just this girl,” Marty said. “She’s on the girls’ soccer teams—we scrimmage against them a lot.”

“And out of everyone, she called you?”

Marty sighed. “It’s no like that. We’re just friends, Willow.”

“Okay, yeah, _sure._ Sure sure sure sure.”

“— **this is already starting to get annoying**.”

We walked past a window filled with televisions, all playing clips from the Sokovia incident. I looked away as soon as I saw it on the screen.

“This, and Laos the other day,” I muttered. “Why does it feel like–”

“It’s going to be fine,” said Marty.

I shook my head. “Listen to what they’re saying, dude. They’re already blaming it on the Avengers. I just don’t like what I’m hearing.”

At school that day, everyone was talking about Sokovia in a quiet hush, and I didn’t know which to focus on that, or the person with powers like mine, or the quest I had to figure out where I came from. My brain was trying to process it all at once, and it wasn’t working. Everywhere I turned, everyone was talking about Sokovia, and for some reason, mutants.

“Hey,” said Ned, nudging me during science class. “You good?”

“Just thinking,” I said.

“Do you know how to do number three?”

“No clue.”

In the corner of my notebook, I began scribbling out a plan to find the Facility again. A plan to find my siblings. I had my suspicions about who was behind it all, but I had to be sure. Because, if I was right, I was definitely still in danger. There was one word, still stuck in my mind, from right near the end, before I left. It had been on all the materials they started giving us in class. I started doing some real searching on my phone under the table. I pulled up Wikileaks files from the year before, and things started to come together.

I leaned over to Peter. “Hey, what do you know about Hydra?” I asked as I continued writing.

“The Nazi terrorist cult?”

_Oh, yeah. This is definitely not good._


	28. The Day Will Come

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow asks Jessica to help with her investigation into her past

  * **Words:** 762
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones
  * **Prompt/Tag:** C: “Can’t you see that I’m a little busy right now?” // “Am I supposed to feel threatened by you? That would be the equivalent of me being threatened by a chihuahua.” [x ](https://ofpoemsandprompts.tumblr.com/post/161121816654/alphabet-prompts) [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) /
  * **Timeline:** June 2015
  * **Song:**[The Day Will Come - Bear McCreary](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DYggUl7TaznM&t=N2M3MmQwNjZiYzQxNjM0MzQ3ODNmOTExYmI0MWQ4MmNhODgzMTY2ZSxSRFhMcFc2TA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190851014547%2Fthe-day-will-come&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _…_



—————————————————————————–

“Hey, Willow, did you get those social media profiles I asked for?”

I nodded and handed Jessica a sticky note. “They’re all on here. I found seven of them.”

She takes the note and I look back at my computer screen, wondering about the question I have for her. It’s a Wednesday afternoon, early June. I had been helping out at Alias Investigations for more than a month now, often lending a hand with the online legwork, which Jessica discovered I was particularly good at. A few times, she had me trailing people as well, but because most of her work was done at night, she didn’t let me do any of that once it got dark.

I shuffled between a few tabs on my computer, one filled with the Wikileaks results for the HYDRA leak, another with a Google Maps of Boston, and a third discussing the appearance of “New Avengers,” which included the same person I had seen during the Sokovia coverage.

“Hey, Jess, could I get your help with something?”

She sighed. “ **Can’t you see that I’m a little busy right now?** ”

“You’re just drinking,” I said. “Please?”

“No.”

“I didn’t even say what it was.”

“Knowing you? It’s a no.”

“You gotta help me,” I said. “Or else… I’ll…” I tried to think of a solid threat. I was desperate, and Jessica was only of the only people I trusted with this information.

“ **Am I supposed to feel threatened by you?** ” Jessica asked. “ **That would be the equivalent of me being threatened by a chihuahua**.”

“It’s a case,” I started.

“Whose?”

“Mine.”

Jessica made a face and took another long sip from her glass. “What do you mean?”

“It’s about who I am. Where I came from. I still have a lot of questions and recently… I think I need answers.”

“Willow, seriously,” said Jessica. “You don’t need to go digging into all that. Okay? Trust me. Some things are just better left buried.”

“Not this.”

“Why not?”

“Because,” I began to explain, but the words were hard to get out. “It’s just… a lot’s been happening in the news and it’s making me think that whatever I left… whatever I’m running from… they’re still out there. And… well… I _knew_ that but it makes it more real, you know?”

“What are you saying?”

“I think… I think HYDRA had something to do with how me and my siblings were created, or at least part of it. And if that’s true… well… I’m still in danger. My siblings, the ones still with them, they’re in danger.”

Jessica shook her head, and almost looked sympathetic. “Willow, if they’re still with them… I don’t know…”

“I know,” I said. “I know. But…” I tried my best to form the right words in my head. “There’s so much that I don’t know. And that… scares me. And I’m afraid that one day, they’ll find me again, or get a hold of me, and if I don’t know who I am… or what they did to me… I’ll never be ready.”

“So, you’re just going to go seek them out first? Willow, no. You should be worried about… I don’t know… school and whatever kids do.”

“Yeah, I _should_ be worried about that. But these are bigger problems.”

Jessica poured herself another glass and glanced out the window behind her. For some reason, I felt like I was going to cry, but I didn’t know why. “So, what’s your plan?” Jessica asked, suddenly.

I swallowed and steadied my voice. “I need to find the lab I was raised in. I don’t know where it is, I just know that it was in Boston. But it was night when I got out, and I have no idea where in Boston I was.”

“Can you remember any landmarks when you got out?” Jessica asked. “Stores, any intersection, certain buildings? How did you get out of the building?”

I shut my eyes. “I got out through the vents, ended up in a parking garage underground. When I got out, there was a Dunkin Donuts. I ate there. There was a clothing store, too. I stole clothes from there and ran.”

“Okay, then,” Jessica said. “So, we need to start with a location where all three of those things are. A parking garage, a clothing store, Dunkin Donuts. That’s where I’d start. Click around on street view. Eventually, you’ll find something that looks right.”

“Okay,” I said. “Do you think this is a good idea?”

Jessica snorted. “I mean, no. But I’m not gonna stop you.”


	29. A Better Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and her friends face the end of middle school

  * **Words:** 828
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds
  * **Prompt/Tag:** “I’m flourishing, thriving and living.” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) /
  * **Timeline:** June 2015
  * **Song:**[Being Yourself - Anna Meredith](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Du2TiP8MmVFE&t=NmNiMmQ2M2FjMjNjYzVkZDA0NTkwOTZjZjI4ZjA1YTVjZTU2NGEzYSxkUjZ1U2NRbw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F190852708582%2Fa-better-side&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _marvel but make it bo burnham_



—————————————————————————–

I stared into my phone screen during the assembly, trying to decide if my acne was as noticeable to everyone else as it was to me. Like always, I had put some cover-up over it, but my face was still covered in clogged, beige bumps. “Fuck,” I muttered. _Will these ever go away?_

“What?” Peter asked, sitting next to me.

“Nothing,” I said. “It’s just my face.”

“Okay, eighth graders!” said the principal, clapping his hands to get out attention. “Two more weeks until you graduate! Can I get a _woohoo?_ ”

“ _Penis!_ ” someone yelled in the crowd and a few people giggled.

The principal talks on, ignoring the interruption. I glance down at my phone again, and see that Ned has texted the group chat, a new one we created after all of us, me, Peter, Ned, Marty, and Kate ended up applying to Midtown School of Science and Technology. I knew Peter and Ned were shoe-ins, Marty too. And probably Kate. Really, I was the weakest link.

I read Ned’s text.

_> Ned: MSST SENT OUT DECISIONS_

My heart dropped and the others must have gotten the message at the same time because we scrambled for our phones. I saw a red bubble on my mail app. One new message. For me, the school had felt almost impossible to get in to. But I was dying to go there, and not just because my friends were. I wanted to start their coding courses, maybe even join robotics. I wanted to start building a life here in New York.

My finger, shaking, I clicked on the mail app, and saw the email from MSST.

_Dear Willow Wren,_

_Congratulations! We are pleased to inform you of your acceptance into Midtown School of Science and Technology’s class of 2019._

I jumped back into the group chat, where the others were already posting screenshots of their emails. I didn’t wait to text—I nudged Peter next to me. “Dude!” I showed him the email.

“No way!” he said. “That means we’re all going there next year!”

“Did Willow get in?” Ned asked leaning over.

“Yes!” I said. “I got in!” I realized how loud we were, and the principal shot us a look as he continued his graduation presentation. I didn’t care. This was my first accomplishment, all on my own, in, well… forever. _I_ had been the one who busted my ass to keep my grades up, even when I didn’t feel like it mattered. _I_ had killed it on the standardized tests, even if it was thanks to the Facility that I was that far ahead. _I actually did this. Holy crap, I did this. I’m going with all my friends. I’m just as good as them._

Peter and I hung out after school that day, and we talked excitedly about all the clubs we were hoping to join at the high school, and about graduation as we walked to the subway.

“Who are you inviting to graduation?” I asked. The school had given us each two tickets for our parents for the ceremony (you had to pay for extras) and I wasn’t sure who to bring. Marty was bringing his mom and dad, separately, since they were divorced. His mom was flying in for the ceremony.

“Probably just May,” said Peter, referencing his aunt. “You?”

“Not sure, yet,” I said, sidestepping around a few trash bags left on the curb. “Not a lot of people to ask right now.”

“Yeah,” said Peter. “I wish… I wish my uncle could be there. He would’ve been so excited about MSST.”

“Uncle Ben?” I asked. I knew he had passed before we met, but Peter didn’t talk about him much, except during times like these.

“Yeah,” Peter nodded. “I just… really miss him right now, you know? And I don’t want to talk about it with my aunt because I don’t want her to feel worse so it just kinda sucks? You know?”

I didn’t know what to say—I was always so awkward in these situations—and I paused for a moment as we crossed the street. “I… uh… well, there’s a lot of people I wish could be at graduation, too. But they can’t be. But yeah, I feel that.” _God, stop being so awkward._ “Hey, wanna stop by Leo’s on the way home?” I asked. Peter brightened at the mention of his favorite used electronics store. “Are you still looking for parts your computer?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Peter said. “I found some things that someone was throwing out the other day, but—”

I breathed a sigh of relief, and we enjoyed the rest of the sunny afternoon as Peter convinced me to try out for the Academic Decathlon team next year and we rated each dog we passed on the way to Leo’s. _I’m flourishing, thriving, and living_. For once in my life, I thought everything might be okay, if it weren’t for my summer vacation plans back to Boston.


	30. In The Corner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow continues to try and get her life together.

  * **Words:** 1094
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Trish Walker
  * **Prompt/Tag:** [“Hey, hey, calm down. They can’t hurt you anymore.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) [“It’s six o’clock in the morning, you’re not having vodka.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) [“I keep seeing his face.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners) /
  * **Timeline:** June 2015
  * **Song:**[Why Am I Like This - Orla Gartland](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-F7PDXoLtA)
  * **A/N:** _i’ve been writing a lot of these lately because my inspo has been through the roof yay for that_



—————————————————————————–

The dreams were getting worse.

Memories had started coming back, ones from the Facility. I had forgotten how much I blocked out after this fall, and now that I was throwing myself back in, everything was coming back. I downplayed a lot of it when I talked to anyone about it, the few people who knew, Marty and Jessica and Trish. I didn’t want them to worry. But it worried me, and more and more things were setting me off.

The smell of hand sanitizer. A static shock when I touched a doorknob. Certain words and phrases, or just the way someone may have said something. Anything similar to the scent of the soap they used at the Facility. _Island Breeze._ Recently, anyone touching me, even accidentally.

* * *

It was like every we had been through at the Facility, all those memories were put on “pause” when we left. Only now, now that I was finally getting my life back, they were coming back. It made me paranoid, start evaluating every part of my life. Because I started to remember the brainwashing too—was it me who blocked out those memories, or them? Did they still have a hold on me?

_How much longer can I downplay this for? How much longer until I explode?_

I combed through the leaked SHIELD and HYDRA files from a few years back. I thought back to the games we used to play at the Facility, the training games. “ _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster.”_ _Why are those memories so fuzzy? It was less than a year ago._

 _It might not be HYDRA, though_ , I thought. _Could have just been a random study._ And gosh, I hoped that was the truth. It would make things so much easier. In fact, it was easier to pretend it was a random study, even though more and more things pointed to HYDRA.

_“Okay, October, let’s calm down now. Doctor, we should do another reset. Voltage?”_

_This_ was why I needed to go back. _This_ was why I had to find my siblings. We hadn’t done any damage yet—but what if it was only the flip of a switch? _I have to stop avoiding this. It’s just going to get worse. I need my memories back._

But tonight’s dream was different. Kilgrave was there, too, at the Facility. I wondered if our encounter with him was what triggered all these memories, suddenly. Memories of not being the one in control. I woke with a start and sat on the edge of the twin bed, my feet dangling over the side. It was four in the morning and I could still hear his voice.

I jumped down off the bed and changed out of my pajamas before grabbing my backpack and leaving the apartment. The sun was just coming up, but the night clung to the edges of the sky and the streets were still empty. It was just dark enough that I was able to fly to Jessica’s, landing on her roof and taking the stairs down to her floor.

I paused, as I always do, before knocking, but when I listened carefully, I heard a laptop fan humming inside and knew she’d be up.

“What do you want?” she yelled when I knocked.

I put my face up to the crack between the door and the frame. “It’s Willow. Can I… uh… come in?”

I heard footsteps cross the apartment and she swung the door open. “Willow?” she asked. “Why are you awake?”

“Bad dream,” I said. “Again. Couldn’t fall back to sleep.” I thought for a moment. “Wait, why are you up?”

“Haven’t gone to bed yet.”

She lets me in, and I start rambling. “I had another nightmare last night,” I start. “I was back at the Facility. Like the rest of them. Except this time, Kilgrave was there. And maybe it was the fact that they were trying to brainwash us at the Facility or… I don’t know. It’s just… **I keep seeing his face**.”

“ **Hey, hey, calm down** ,” said Jessica. “ **He can’t hurt you anymore.** Kilgrave is _dead_. We both saw him die.”

“I know,” I said. “I know.”

She sat back down at her desk and shuffles through some papers. “Well, if it makes you feel better, I’ll let you crash here until you have to go to school.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Blanket is on the couch.”

I sit down on the familiar, orange couch and pull the blanket over me as I lay down.

“Gonna have to get a sign for that wall,” said Jessica. “Make it say _Willow’s couch_.”

“Really?” I asked.

“ _No_.”

I doze off and wake up an hour later to Trish arguing with Jess. “ ** _It’s six o'clock in the morning, you’re not having vodka_**.”

I open one eye. “Hey, Trish. What’s up?”

“Bad dream,” said Jess, nodding at me, explaining my presence to Trish.

Trish smiled sympathetically. “I brought bagels by,” she said. “If you want one.”

While Jess insists on having a liquid breakfast and continues working, Trish sticks around while I pile a copious amount of cream cheese onto a plain bagel. We eat breakfast on the floor, and I tell her about my own investigation, similar to the IGH one we were working on, and for the first time, she asks what I’m thinking about when I’m spiraling in new memories. I tell her, cautiously, about the tests, about the phrases still stuck in my head.

Trish shook her head. “Just promise me you’ll at least graduate middle school first.”

At that moment, a light bulb went off in my head. “Wait, that reminds me!” I scrambled to get my backpack and tried to figure out how to best phrase my next question.

“So, I have a question,” I said. Jessica doesn’t look up from her desk. “So… uh… my eighth-grade graduation is in a few weeks and it’s like they’re doing this ceremony and everything and everyone is bringing their parents? But… you know… I don’t really have anyone to ask to come but they gave us two free tickets each… uh… I was wondering… if you guys would come?”

The apartment is quiet.

“It’s just… you guys are like… the only adults I know who actually care about me or whatever? But also it’s fine if you can’t go, it’s just—”

“Yeah, when is it?” Trish asks, and I hand her the tickets. “Yeah, I can go. Jess, you’re coming, right?”

“It’s okay if you don’t want to,” I say quickly.

“When is it?” Jessica asks.

“The twenty-fourth,” Trish says. “At noon.”

Jess heaves a sigh. “I can try to make it.”

I can’t contain my grin as I start packing up my bag to head to school.

“She’ll be there,” Trish says to me on my way out. “I’ll make sure of it.”


	31. Dance With a Devil On Your Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and her gang have their graduation ceremony and the summer of reckoning begins.

  * **Words:** 822
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Trish Walker, Peter Parker, Marty Fields, Kate Gray, Ned Leeds
  * **Prompt/Tag:** [“I think your cat has unlocked the secrets of the universe and is judging us for being stupid.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts) [“I’m too sober for this.” “I just ironed these pants!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)
  * **Timeline:** June 2015
  * **Song:**[Shake It Out - Florence and the Machine](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DWbN0nX61rIs&t=NjA3YzgzMjZkNWE3NjM0YWViMmRmZTczODI1MDg5NjMwZjMwZGZiNSxpUGFTTW9zZQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F611281135028289536%2Fdance-with-a-devil-on-your-back&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _it’s been a chill few chapters……… but willow’s own investigation is about to start soon so_



—————————————————————————–

We didn’t have to be at school until nine the day of eighth grade graduation, also the last day of school before summer vacation. All of us, Peter, Ned, Kate, Marty met up beforehand for an early breakfast and then walked to school. It was a warm summer morning, the hazy kind, where you can tell the day that follows will be hot. We stopped at the bodega near the school, looking for snacks to bring to the ceremony.

“Hey guys, did you know the Jello isn’t vegetarian?” Ned asked, reading off a Jello cup label.

“Why are you bringing Jello?” Peter asked.

“More importantly,” I asked. “There’s _meat_ in Jello?”

“Gelatin,” Kate piped in. “Gelatin is made from animal parts, Willow.”

“Huh,” I said.

Marty and I were on drink duty, standing in front of the two refrigerators. I stared down at Marty’s carefully pressed khakis and wondered if I should have gotten more dressed up. It was hard to find a summer dress that hid the wings well. Impossible, actually.

“Hey, you missed a spot,” I said, nodding at Marty’s carefully pressed pants.

“Are you serious?” Marty asked. “ **I _just_ ironed these pants**.”

“I’m _joking_ ,” I said. “Chill.”

“Do you think I look all right?” Marty asked. “Like—”

“I mean you look fine,” I said. “Why?”

“Well, I was thinking of asking Annabel to hang with us this summer.”

“That’s it?” She and Marty had been Snapchatting a lot recently, and I was surprised that they had never hung out outside of school. “So, like, are you guys…”

“No!” said Marty, quickly, as Peter looked over at us from the counter. “No,” he said quieter. “I just think she’s cool.”

“Wait, Willow, can you grab Gatorade from over there?” Peter asked.

I held up a bottle. “This one?”

“Is that a red one? Yeah.”

I was snapped back to our drink mission and tried to forget about Marty and Annabel. _I really hope I don’t end up spending this summer third-wheeling with Marty and this girl._

We pooled our money at the register and spent five minutes trying to figure out how to get everyone compensated with the limited number of bills we had. The bodega cat sat next to the register and blinked once as we shuffled dollar bills between us. “ **I think your cat has unlocked the secrets of the universe and is judging us for being stupid** ,” I said to the man behind the counter, a fairly familiar face after all the after-school stops we made here, and he just shook his head.

“It’s mathematics,” he said. “You can’t do math? Graduating eighth grade and you can’t do math?” He laughed. “Stay in school, eh?”

We got to the school with a few minutes to spare, the others splitting off to find parents and family. Marty had made it clear that it was best if I stay away from his mom, and while Peter invited me to come say hi to Aunt May, I still felt like an outsider among all these families. _I wish my siblings were here. Even just a few of them. Even just one._

The ceremony itself flew by, and in less than an hour, I realized I was about to complete my first year of school ever. Just as the assistant principal launched into a final speech riffing on _Oh The Places You’ll Go,_ my superhearing picked up a low voice from the back of the gymnasium. “ **I’m too sober for this**.” _Whomst the fuck?_

I swiveled around and saw Jess and Trish standing in the back row, up against the wall, watching the ceremony. _They came? They came!_

As soon as the last speech finished and we had our diplomas in hand, I ran over to them, and I realized I was beaming.

“You guys are here!” I exclaimed.

“Your principal really likes the sound of his own voice,” Jessica. She gave a half-smile. “Congratulations, by the way. I had my doubts…”

“No,” admonished Trish, giving Jessica a playful shove. “She’s a smart kid. Here,” she said, handing me a small bag. “Graduation gift.”

I peeked inside, pushing away the tissue paper, and pulled out a miniature pair of binoculars. “For me?!”

“So you can stop borrowing mine,” said Jessica. “How are they?”

I peered through them and stared around the crowd in the gymnasium. “Awesome,” I said. “There’s a guy over there with his thumb all the way up his nose—these are great! You guys, thank you!” I strapped them around my neck, deciding to wear them the rest of the day, like some private eye necklace.

In all the families there that day, I had felt a little lost, until I took stock of everyone there who cared for me. Jessica. Trish. Marty. Peter. Ned. Kate. Six friends. Six more friends than I had when I arrived in New York City.

So, I’d say it was a pretty successful school year.


	32. Silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow wakes from yet another nightmare.

  * **Words:** 856
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Kate Gray
  * **Prompt/Tag:** [“You know what we’re doing is wrong.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Car Radio - Twenty One Pilots](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_Jp2mlzEjw)
  * **A/N:** _and so the Facility arc starts (until I get a better name lol)_



—————————————————————————–

_The Facility had levels connected by wide, sloping hallways lit with the same glowing beige lights. It seemed to never end, the maze of hallways and laboratories, of levels and floors and elevators. It was a labyrinth where the longer you ran, the narrower the halls got until you reached a dead end._

_On the lowest level was what we called the Blue Lab—that’s where we had been exposed to whatever gave us the other powers, whatever had killed nearly two hundred of the other kids, leaving only me and the other eleven. I remember they used gas to calm us into the room and going in there felt like a haze, like I was dying each time I went under. The Blue Lab was for the resets, too. How many months of missing memories of the Blue Lab account for?_

_In this nightmare, Kilgrave was there again, in the Blue Lab. They didn’t need to use the gas to get me to stop moving, Kilgrave just commanded it, and I was frozen, trying not to cry, as another reset was performed with a jolt of electricity._

_And then I was screaming for my siblings, telling them to run, to not play Monster anymore. “ **You know what we’re doing is wrong.** ” I relived the time Pip and I stumbled across the kids who didn’t make it through the Blue Lab. And then Kilgrave returned, along with Dr. Dawn Turner and the room filled with gas again, the floor now conducted electricity…_

And then I woke up. I was in Kate’s living room and when I looked at the cable box, it was almost three in the morning. My heart was pounding like it was about to burst and I sat up in my sleeping bag, surveying the room, doing a sweep, as if people from the Facility could sense my dreams and had come to get me.

_October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

Kate was still asleep, and I leaned against the couch, trying to calm myself down. My wings pressed around my body like a suit of armor, acting as a built-in weighted blanket. The pressure helped, just a little. I was sweating in the hoodie I wore to bed, but I had used it to hide the wings from Kate. My right foot wouldn’t stop shaking.

I opened up the notes app on my phone and wrote down the dream, every detail that I could remember. The note was filled with plans for my trip to Boston. I was going to leave later that month, as soon as I had enough money to get there and back. Jessica had started giving me a two-dollar stipend per day, just enough to basically buy Dunkin’ in the morning, but I had been pocketing it away. It was way below minimum wage, but I think she was just tired of me asking to borrow a dollar.

I had triangulated where I thought the parking garage entrance to the Facility was. I would go in, not get caught, get as much information as I could, and get my siblings out. I had drawn up maps from memory, but it was difficult to orient myself in the dreams and recollections.

 _It’s nearly time now. You have about as much preparation as you’re going to get._ Without summer vacation in full swing, I didn’t have school to take my mind off this next mission.

The final part was the hardest, and that was coming up with the lie. I planned to tell my friends that I was going camping with some friends from my old home, which would hopefully let me stay offline for a reasonable amount of time. I told Marty the truth, and his dad wouldn’t notice me missing. Hogarth was a nuisance, but I told her the truth as well. She was hoping to continue building the potential lawsuit (like suing _HYDRA_ was ever going to happen) and wanted evidence.

Jessica was the hardest person to lie to, mostly because I knew she wouldn’t buy any lie I told her, and so in the end, I resolved to tell her the truth as well. _At least if something happens to me, she’ll know where to find me._

Kate must have heard me stir awake because I suddenly heard a very groggy “What are you doing up?”

I turned to her and clicked my phone off. “Woke up randomly,” I whispered. “Was checking the time.”

“Oh,” she said. “What time?”

“It’s like three.”

“Word.” She turned over and passed out again, sprawled out on top of her sleeping bag.

I sighed and laid back down on the throw pillow I had stolen from the couch. I had always believed that the memories would fade with time, that this obsession with finding the stolen ones would fade, but they stuck with me, only growing more permanent with time. I had been out for nearly six months, but I felt the same as I did on day one, maybe worse now. _How does that even happen? Will I always feel like this? Will they always be with me?_

As I tried to drift back off to sleep, I knew I would have to leave soon. No more excuses.


	33. Take Me Home - Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow begins her journey back to Boston

  * **Words:** 1150
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“Now, hold on just a diddly-darn minute.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and) / [@anti-solidcoffee](https://tmblr.co/mJEq_j5exT_7I9CcKtroRPQ)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Under Pressure - Queen](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DaUW_8cWG7YA&t=YjQyYTRmNjcyNmU2NDE5MmJiOTc1NWRhMTJiY2NhMDlkZjMxM2RkMSxudzA4TUhYYQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F612147034289553408%2Ftake-me-home-part-1&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _thank you for sending in the prompt! I was so excited to write this arc!_



—————————————————————————–

I left New York City at three in the morning, which let me fly to Boston while it was still dark and arrive early in the morning, giving me the entire day to investigate. I stuffed my backpack with some snacks and my computer, along with all the print-out notes I had collected to help me. I went radio-silent online.

And then I left. The first few minutes of the flight were surreal, like I couldn’t believe I was willingly going back to the same place I had escaped from about eight months before. The air was cool, and I sailed above the clouds, pushing myself to catch the airstreams and sail as fast as possible. I had never flown this far in one go, even on my trip to New York City, I had to stop several times.

_I’m going to be sore as hell after this._

I could already feel the shoulder aches that would definitely follow.

The flight gave me a lot of time to think, mostly about the prospects of facing down the people who ran the Facility again, of seeing them all again. The only thing that made that inevitability a little bit better was the idea that I may see my siblings again as well. _What if I’m too late? What if… HYDRA… no we don’t know that for sure… whoever, then, got to them? What if they’re not the same people anymore? What about the resets?_

When I was done worrying about that, I started worrying about high school—of all things. Ned had made a new group chat for us recently, composed of him, me, Peter, Ned, and Kate. He would have included Marty, but Marty was usually on his own wavelength socially and only hung out with those guys when I was there. Everyone was stoked, but I was worried about… well… _everything_.

So, I spent another chunk of my flight listing what I was excited about. _Robotics club. Coding classes. Musical theater? That could be fun._

I saw Boston up ahead just as the sun was rising and landed out in a still-quiet parking lot. I checked my notes, and the parking garage was just a twenty-minute walk away. _You can still turn around. You don’t have to go through with this._

I decided to stall and go to the Dunkies that I knew was near the parking garage entrance, at least having a healthy breakfast before storming the castle. Plus, I was parched for an iced coffee. Jessica and Trish seemed to have decided to stop letting me have coffee and I had to get root beer when I was with them instead. Which, to be fair, was delicious in its own way. But still. I needed that jolt of caffeine.

I was hyper-aware of every person that I passed on the walk there, wondering if they were involved with the Facility, or if they knew about it. And I knew it was immensely risky to be out in the open like this and planning to procrastinate in the Dunkin Donuts _across the street_ from the Facility. _Honestly, I hope someone from the Facility shows up. I would love a fight right now._

I sat in the Dunkin Donuts, munching on a coffee roll and trying to finish the iced coffee as fast as possible while I stared up at the TV playing MSNBC and scrolled through Instagram. A story about the Avengers caught my attention and I looked up at the TV just as they played a story about their new compound.

 **“Now, hold on just a diddly-darn minute,”** I said to myself, staring up at the screen. The story confirmed the appearance of “new Avengers,” and the same woman from the Sokovia footage I had seen was there, the one with the powers that Marty compared to mine. “All right,” I said, under my breath. “Sure, when she’s got these powers she’s an _Avenger_ and a _superhero_ but then one time I used them in public one time I was deemed a _weaponized threat_ on the news. Epic.”

 _That’s all right_ , I thought, as I got up to throw away my trash and head out. _I like doing things on my own terms anyways._

The parking garage loomed ahead of me across the street. It was strange seeing it in the daylight, in reality again instead of my dreams. _This garage was my first glimpse of the outside world in seven years. And here I am again._

I crossed the street and entered through the car entrance, pulling my earbuds out so that I could hear every movement around me. My steps echoed off the concrete floors and walls and ahead, I saw the stairwell I remembered emerging from. _Remember that moment? When you opened the door and suddenly, it was… just… a parking garage? And you were free? That was the real world?_

I took a breath and stepped into the stairwell. Just as I remembered, there’s a door marked _utility_. _Ready, Willow?_ I thought I’d have to break the lock, but the door opened easily. Ahead of me was a small storage room, with another door in the back. This one was also unlocked. _It’s all coming back now_. After the backdoor, there’s a series of abandoned offices, though those were empty when I came through back in November. _One of these offices has the door to the Facility stairwell._ None of these rooms were lit, and I have to use my phone flashlight to navigate them.

I felt sick, knowing how close I was, that at any moment now, I could encounter a Facility worker. The abandoned office presented like a series of backrooms, and finally, I found the door to the drab stairwell I remember climbing. I descended down more than ten flights and when I landed at the bottom, there’s one long service tunnel.

_Final stretch. This is it._

The service tunnel curves slightly and after the curve, I saw the giant, steel doors of the Facility. For the first time, too, I noticed the symbol on the doors, and it’s a giant, stylized HYDRA stamp. My stomach dropped at the sight of it. “Well fuck,” I said to myself. _There’s the answer to one question._

_How could I have been so oblivious?_

I shut my eyes and gathered the air moving through the tunnel into a bluish force of wind that I propelled at the doors, blowing them open with a _bang!_ I expected troops or guards or mad scientists to come bursting out, but the blast reverberated through the tunnel before the silence returned.

When I stepped inside the Facility, into the atrium that connected all the levels and floors, all the lights were off, and as I shone my flashlight around and took in the quiet, I realized it had been completely abandoned.

There was no one there.


	34. Take Me Home - Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow meets someone unexpected at the abandoned Facility

  * **Words:** 1678
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Fanisimo
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“It’s not like I missed you or anything.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and) [“Why can’t you appreciate my sense of humor?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge) [“Maybe you’re not thinking hard enough.” “I’ve never killed anyone before.” “It sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Take Me Home - Phil Collins](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DkPQE6bURNF0&t=MGI1ZTUwMTM4MjEzMTJiNzhiY2MzZThmNzQyYzExMmMyOWIzZmVmOSwxaW1weXV4MQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F612147043260088320%2Ftake-me-home-part-2&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _part 2/4_



—————————————————————————–

I took several cautious steps forward, listening for something, anything. The place was in disarray as if it had been abandoned in a rush. I shut my eyes and tried to block out the memories already flooding in.

_I need to get to level eight. That’s where they had us. I need to know what happened to the others._

I opened my wings and sailed down through the atrium, towards the lower levels, counting each floor as I passed. Down here, emergency lights were still on, and I shut my phone flashlight off as I started to explore. _Where do I even start?_

I broke into one of the laboratories and got on one of the few machines left behind, plugging in a flash drive I brought along with a password cracker. The next stop would be the dormitories. Maybe they left something behind, or—

I heard a door creak open. Possibly a floor below me.

“Shit,” I said. Someone was still here after all. I focused a little harder and pulled out metallic footsteps getting louder by the second. The password cracker was still running, and I ducked behind the lab bench trying to figure out my next move. My wings were still open from the flight down and though I tucked them in to hide, I kept them unfurled.

The footsteps were close now and then the door opened. I held my breath, but I knew I was found.

I jumped over the lab bench and hurled myself at whoever just entered, only taking seconds to process what it was. It almost looked like a small Transformer. My wings came in contact with the suit and punched the ‘borg back, just as it raised its hands and a red beam shot across the room and smashed the glass cabinets.

“Wait—stop!” the suit cried out and just as I was recoiling for another strike, the mask popped off. “Heckergal?”

“Fanisimo?” I asked.

My sibling, Fanisimo, called “September” by the scientists, broke into a grin. “Wha—what are you doing here?”

“What are you doing here?” I asked. “And what is this suit? You look like a Walmart Iron Man.”

The suit opened and Fanisimo climbed out awkwardly. “Yeah, it’s a side project. Your hair got long,” he added.

“You have a mustache starting,” I pointed out, and Fanisimo’s brown cheeks gained a shade of deep red as he reached out to touch the few hairs under his nose.

“Yeah,” he said. “Looks like I won that bet with Manny.”

I looked around the lab and into the atrium beyond. “What happened here? Where are the others? Did you know that it was HYDRA–?”

Fanisimo glanced away. “You’ve missed a lot,” he said. “Maybe in a good way. But…”

“Are the others okay? Are they safe?”

“They’re fine. They got out.”

I was having a hard time processing all of this and I felt like my brain was running at a million miles a minute. “Where’s Dr. Turner?”

“No idea. Look, Heckergal, we need to talk.”

“Yeah,” I said, and then we both went in for a hug, and for some reason, I found myself about to start crying. “ **It’s not like I missed you or anything.** ”

“Bro, I missed you too.”

We went to level nine, where Fanisimo had set up a camp of his own. Parts and projects were strewn around the place, wires tangling across the floor. There was a sleeping bag in the corner, along with a box of what looked like personal belongings. I sat down on the ground and as soon as Fanisimo got the suit prototype back to the charging port, he sat down cross-legged across from me and sighed.

“Uh… so I guess it started right after you left. Once we realized you actually made it out, we started to have some hope. A few weeks later, the higher ups here got panicked because they heard the news of the Avengers cleaning out other HYDRA facilities.”

“Did you know this was HYDRA?”

“Oh, I’ll get to that,” said Fanisimo, and I didn’t like the way he said it. “But they planned to move us to a new facility, way up north. We used that as a chance to make our escape and scattered. After a few months, I returned to scavenge what I could and see if I could figure out what they were doing here.”

“And that’s why I came.”

He nodded. “I thought so.”

“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about this place recently,” I said. “Memories, they’ve started coming back…”

“Same. But I’m not sure if I want all those memories back.”

I asked the question I was dreading. “What were they doing here, Fanisimo? What was the goal? HYDRA captured some toddlers and then what?”

“Yeah, that’s the thing,” said Fanisimo. “Okay… so…think about it, doesn’t it seem strange that most of us arrived _after_ we were born? If they wanted to ensure that this project stayed secret, why didn’t they have us born here? Or make us in test tubes? I mean, it was six years before you got here, five years for Pingu. The rest of us were months old, except for Gooblin who was a toddler. Why did that happen?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I just assumed that my mom was a part of a study and ran after giving birth. Took them six years to find me again.”

“You think HYDRA took six years to find you? Weren’t you living in the same neighborhood you were abandoned in?”

I could tell that Fanisimo was leading up to something, but I wasn’t sure what it was yet. He had that excitable, stuttering cadence he got when he was ramping up, even if it wasn’t good news he was going to deliver.

“We started arriving here in 2001,” said Fanisimo. “Right? And that’s back when normal kids were arriving, too, the non-mutant ones.”

“The ones that died in the Blue Lab.”

“Right. And after that initial wave, it was just mutants like you and Pingu and Gooblin that arrived.”

I pinched my temple in an effort to ward off an oncoming headache. “But what does this mean?”

“2001. What happened in 2001?”

“We were born. Duh.”

“What else?”

“Uh…”

“Bro… you said you’re a New Yorker now.”

“Shit… nine-‘leven?”

“Yep.”

I stood up. “Oh, God. Please don’t tell me some time-travel conspiracy shit dude. What, did our births cause Mr. Bush to—”

Fanisimo ignored me and turned on one of the screens rigged to the wall. He wasn’t smiling.

“ **Why can’t you appreciate my sense of humor?** ” I asked.

After a few seconds, the screen came to life, and I was staring at photocopies all marked _CLASSIFIED_ and stamped with a SHIELD logo. “Project Rebirth,” said Fanisimo. “Right here. Thaddeus Ross’ response to the attacks—create a new generation of super soldiers.” He paused to judge my reaction. “Ross is big in the government. Rumors that he might even be Secretary of State someday.”

_That means next to nothing to me. I don’t even know Obama’s last name._ “Wait, sorry, back up, I thought it was HYDRA,” I said. “We agreed on that. And wasn’t this program shut down? Didn’t it get leaked?”

“Officially, sure,” said Fanisimo. “But we both know that didn’t happen, and then HYDRA took it over right around the time they started testing in the Blue Lab. Remember the leaks from a few years ago?”

“Right. Yeah.”

“HYDRA infiltrated this lab for their own purposes, started testing new things on us. And you remember the brainwashing, the resets, etcetera.”

“Right. And the blue… glowing… thing.”

“Right. But this?” said Fanisimo, tapping the screen. “Who started this? It was the U.S. government. That’s how we ended up here.”

I felt like my head was going to explode. “Fuck. Wait a minute. Do the others know?”

“Mostly. I’m still putting the pieces together, but…”

“So we could have had normal lives,” I said, suddenly. “I mean, if there was no study in the first place, we were only put on their radar when something went wrong. When my powers were exposed. There was no contract. We were just… kidnapped… and then HYDRA went and started erasing the small bits of life we did have… to what? Create more soldiers? Is that why I can’t remember anything? Is that what all this was for?”

“Yeah, a bunch of brainwashed soldiers,” finished Fanisimo. “Resets to keep us from remembering too much. And remember, HYDRA _is_ SHIELD, at least to an extent. So, in the end, SHIELD started this. HYDRA finished it. I have papers here that say that the blue thing was _borrowed_ from SHIELD in the first place. But I don’t remember much myself.”

“ **Maybe you’re not thinking hard enough,** ” I joked, and Fanisimo rolled his eyes.

“Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“So have I,” I said, shutting my eyes, trying to recall any of the tests in the Blue Lab, beyond the resets and the blue lights.

“They stole years from us,” Fanisimo said quietly. “I mean, what if we did bad things? Or hurt people? Killed them?”

“ **I’ve never killed anyone before** ,” I said.

“ **It sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself,** “ Fanisimo responded, and I ignore him.

“We need to call the others,” I said, suddenly, pacing the room. “We need to… I don’t know. Do we know where the scientists fled to?” I felt anger bubbling up inside me, thinking about all the lost years stolen from me, from all of us. I knew it was HYDRA, but seeing it all mapped out like this, the sheer bureaucracy off it all makes my blood boil. “We have to… get them. Stop them. Especially if they’re still in government.”

“I can call the others,” said Fanisimo. “We arranged a network in the case we needed to get in touch. And now that you’re back, it’s probably time.”

“Call them,” I said. “We need to have a family meeting.”

It was time to get control back.


	35. Take Me Home - Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and the Lab Rats reunite

  * **Words:** 977
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Gooblin, Pip, Pingu, Burr, Spark, Danny, Manny, Dew, Fanisimo, France, Sabbath
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“I have contemplated becoming a hermit.” “We were designed to be disposable.” “](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)[Could you be any louder?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Boss Bitch - Doja Cat](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DRsW66teC0BQ&t=MDdhYTcyNzIzZWU5NWU0NTkxMGE0ODA5YTYyNmM2MzllZjlmN2I3YixDdElvZVBDWQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F612147046156238848%2Ftake-me-home-part-3&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _part ¾_



—————————————————————————–

24 hours later, and the Lab Rats had returned home.

“So here we are,” I said. “All of us back together again.”

The twelve of us sat on the floor in the old lab and the nostalgia was almost overwhelming. We all looked a little older, a little more alive than when we all last met, but they were unmistakably my family. I was amazed at how fast Fanisimo was able to get everyone mobilized again.

Sabbath got there first. She was still in Boston, trying to break into theater using her mimicry skills. Burr showed up next with a suspicious amount of money. Spark had been on the run and gladly fell back on our new meeting spot. Pingu had found her family, in Virginia. France was looking for his family in the Midwest. Dew flew in from Los Angeles, Gooblin had been somewhere out in the woods of upper New York state. And Pip, Danny, and Manny sped in from Las Vegas, where they were scamming tourists with Pip’s strange visions of the future and the twins’ abilities to shapeshift.

I chatted with Gooblin as Fanisimo prepped the same presentation he had given me. “What have you been up to?” I asked.

She smiled the same, quirky, faraway smile that I remembered. “Oh, I found this abandoned fire tower upstate. **I have contemplated becoming a hermit**.”

“Huh,” I said. “Well, if I ever have to hide out, I guess I’ll know where to go.”

All of us. Together. We shared stories from the last few months and as I heard each of them speak, I tried not to cry with joy at finally being with others like me. Many of us had rough times upon escaping. Almost all of us were homeless and didn’t exist on any government documents. Even if we did, none of us knew our legal names.

Fanisimo explained to them all what he explained to me and we sat stone-faced as he showed us the government documents that had signed our rights away.

“How many scientists and agents do you think worked here?” Pip asked. “How many got away?”

“A lot,” said Fanisimo. “And most of them scattered.”

“But we have records, right?” I asked. “Leads we can follow?”

“And then what?” Burr asked.

“We… turn them in,” I say. “Catch them. Expose them. Call the authorities.”

“Vigilante-style?” asks Pip.

“Exactly,” I say. “We could do it.”

The room is silent until Dew speaks up. “I mean, I’m in,” he says, starting to nod. “Let’s take down some fuckin’ Nazis.”

Afterward, Danny and Manny, using fake IDs they had from Vegas and their talents for slight shapeshifting went to pick up party supplies and we decided that the best course of action to close out a fucked up childhood at this Facility was to absolutely trash it. Pingu and I spent the afternoon recovering as many documents as we could and sorting them out so that each of us could take a stack when we left, so as not to give all the evidence to one person.

And then we fucking raged. We went late into the night, blasting music through the abandoned facility, spray-painting graffiti onto as many surfaces as we could cover, smashing whatever we could get our hands on. Dew started recording for a music video he was working on. We tested out our newer powers—I wasn’t the only one whose time in the Blue Lab changed what I could do. At one point, Dew and I narrowly avoid a piece of lab equipment thrown by Burr. “Sorry!” she yelled.

“Think they’re looking for us?” Spark asked as we watched a few of the boys smash the glass walls on the fifth level.

“Nah,” I said. “I’m pretty sure **we were designed to be disposable**.”

“Not true,” said France, joining us and sensing my false relief. “I had agents come looking when I was out west. So did the Vegas gang.”

“For real?” I asked.

“Yeah,” said France. “Maybe we were disposable when they first picked us up, but not anymore. I would be careful.”

I would have liked to find out where the former Facility members were headquartered now. Even if many of them split, I couldn’t imagine the program we were a part of drying up. Shaking these thoughts away, I practiced summoning a burst of wind and sent a few wheeled carts flying.

“One more thing,” said Fanisimo that night, and I saw he had moved in a few gallons of gasoline. “Wanna light this place up?”

Pingu did the honors, using her new ability to conjure fire to light up the lab and we set the place ablaze, running back up into the parking garage and out into the street—where we could still hear the fire alarms blaring below.

“Fuck yes!” Danny yelled. “Hell fucking yes!”

“Guys, quiet down,” said Sabbath. “ **Could you be any louder?** ”

“Hell yes I can!” shouted Manny. “Fanisimo, can I borrow one of your suits?”

“Guys, let’s go,” said Spark. “Yo, the police are gonna come.”

“ _Fuck_ the police,” said Manny.

We ran through the streets, shouting and whooping, racing each other and flexing our powers. It was absolute liberation.

Pingu’s parents had given her money to get a hotel room, and all twelve of us crammed into the one room, the slumber party continuing long into the night as we finished Dew’s music video, watched movies, and took a group photo. It was so strange seeing them outside of the lab, in the real world, as themselves. Dressing how we wanted, talking when we wanted, and free to use our gifts as we pleased. As we settled down to sleep, sometime around three in the morning, I stared out the window, thinking of how lucky I was to find my family again. Whatever came next, we would do it together.


	36. Take Me Home - Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and the Lab Rats make a plan for moving forward

  * **Words:** 436
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Gooblin, Pip, Pingu, Burr, Spark, Danny, Manny, Dew, Fanisimo, France, Sabbath
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“I’d ask you to stay but I don’t like you.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[You Don’t Own Me - Grace, G-Eazy](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D8SeRU_ZPDkE&t=YzEzMTE2ODZlYTdiOTJiODU5NDMyMzVjZDA3NjRhMDU0ODhkMDZmYSxodjczcm51UA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F612147051360337920%2Ftake-me-home-part-4&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _part 4/4_



—————————————————————————–

The next morning, we got up late and raided the hotel buffet, all twelve of us descending onto it like a swarm of locusts, picking the pastry table clean, half of us hungover from drinking more alcohol than we had in our entire lives. For some of us, that was _any._

“Guys, our fire made the news!” Pip announced, holding up his phone.

“Is that supposed to be a good thing?” Sabbath laughed.

Among our smorgasbord of food, we discussed our plans for the future. We created a group chat to stay in touch, and I came up with what may have been my best idea of 2015. “Okay,” I said. “So. The Hydra agents. I have a plan.” We passed around all the files we collected, copies that Pingu and I had scanned in the hotel business center that morning. “Whoever takes out the most at the end of each month wins.”

“Wins what?” Burr asked.

“Uh… bragging rights?” I said. “Ooh! Lets put money in a pool every month.”

“I don’t know,” said Sabbath. “This seems a little…”

“Insane?” France asked. “Yeah.”

“C’mon,” I said. “They ruined our lives. Let’s at least have a little fun while we clean them up and turn them in. I’m tired of feeling like everything that happened is my fault. Because it’s not. We didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I could be on board with this,” said Dew. “Actually, I’m totally in.”

“Me too,” said Fanisimo.

One by one, we put our hands in together, solidifying our pact to end the nightmare we were born in to. No one else would be subject to what we were subject to. We would see to this.

“Team Lab Rats on three,” Gooblin suggested. “One. Two. Three.”

“ _Lab Rats_!”

We departed, one by one, making promises to meet up again soon and check on in as we took on this new mission, the _Rat Revolution_ as we were calling it, or _RatRev_ for short.

“Hey, stay in touch,” Fanisimo told me. “We lost you once.”

“I know,” I said.

“ **I’d ask you to stay but I don’t like you.** ”

I laughed. “You going to be okay?”

“Yeah,” he said. “I think I’m going to start school in the fall. Keep building things.” He was wearing a pair of metal gauntlets that he fiddled with as he talked. “You need anything? Gear, I mean?”

“Like… a suit?”

Fanismo nodded slowly, and I could almost see the gears turning. “Yeah. I could do that. Let’s talk. Send me some ideas.”

“Awesome,” I said. “I’ll call you. See you around good buddy.”

“See you around.”


	37. A Thousand Reasons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Pingu stay in Boston a little longer

  * **Words:** 792
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Pingu
  * **Prompt/Tag:**["Are you drunk?” “You’re supposed to talk me out of this.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Into the Unknown - Idina Menzel, AURORA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1uoTMkhUiE)
  * **A/N:** _ya i like frozen and this is about to be one of Those journeys so_



—————————————————————————–

The other Lab Rats left Boston early that morning, but Pingu and I stayed. She told her parents she would be there for five days, to give herself some time to explore the city, and she invited me to stay at her hotel room. We spent the afternoon goofing off, running around the city and catching up. Out of all the Lab Rats, we both had been able to return to some sort of normalcy for someone our age.

That evening, we camped out at her hotel room, watching TV and looking through the files we had taken. Lots of them referenced taped tests, something Fanisimo and I hadn’t been able to locate, but a lot of the data was still helpful. We had the names of the scientists, for example, and a better understanding of the scope of the experiments.

* * *

“Any idea what a tesseract is?” Pingu asked me as we lounged with the papers spread out around us.

“Where does it say that?” I asked and looked over her shoulder as she pointed to a reference to the Blue Lab.

“That’s what they were working with in the Blue Lab,” Pingu said. “This might be a start.”

I Googled the phrase, but nothing came up, except for a few geometry things and a reference to a book called _A Wrinkle in Time_. “Could be this?” I asked. “Says it’s something to… like travel space but faster? Like a fifth dimension?”

“That’s fiction,” said Pingu. “I think it’s just a coincidence.”

“It’s also a four-dimensional cube.”

“How can a _cube_ be four-dimensional?”

“Huh,” I said. “Here’s something weird. So, besides the names, we had numbers, right? I was ten, you were three, and so on and so forth. All the way up to twelve.”

“Yeah…” Pingu says. “Why?”

“So why does this paper mention thirteen subjects when they started experiments in 2002?” I searched through the rest of the digital documents we had, but there was no mention of a subject thirteen. “How could we have missed this?”

“Maybe they died with the others,” says Pingu. “In the Blue Lab.”

“But they say here thirteen _mutants_. It was only the kids who didn’t already have powers who died. This person should have lived—if they really were a mutant.” I scan through the folders of digital documents, but there’s so much to look through that I quickly become discouraged. A few hours passed by while Pingu and I tried to brainstorm other reasons why earlier documents were referencing a thirteenth subject, and what happened to them. Around midnight, I stood up to go to the bathroom, and nearly stumbled over into the television.

“ **Are you drunk?** ” Pingu asked, crinkling her nose.

“Just a little bit,” I said. “What, did you think I was gonna go through these documents sober? The boys had some leftovers.”

“Dude…” Pingu started.

When I got out of the bathroom, I went back to my laptop and started working on a programming challenge from earlier. As I referenced an index in the program, I had a flash of inspiration and opened back up the drive with the Facility files. This time, I searched for “Subject 0,” instead of thirteen, and was greeted with a page of results.

“Hey,” I said, shaking her awake after she fell asleep on her bed. “Look. I found Thirteen. They’re really Zero. They started counting from zero up. Zero to twelve is thirteen.” I could barely control my excitement as my shaking fingers scrolled through the documents that mentioned Zero.

“Sister… we have another sister,” Pingu murmured like she couldn’t quite believe it. “Out there. Somewhere.”

There wasn’t a lot of information on her, just that she was moved to another facility in Washington D.C. “Oh my gosh,” I said. “We have to go find her. We have to.”

“I agree,” Pingu said.

“Wait, **you’re supposed to talk me out of this** ,” I said.

“No, we need to find her,” says Pingu. “If she’s like us… I mean… we need to be there for each other, you know? It’s near my house. It wouldn’t be that bad of a trip.”

We had already broken back into an old facility, dug into a past that may have been better left alone. _How much more can we keep poking at this?_ I could think of thousands of reasons why we should just pack up and go home, be satisfied with what we did find, but I couldn’t stop now that we had started. What if Zero knew more? What if we could finally get our hands on the testing tapes?

“How fast do you think we can get to D.C.?” It looked like my summer vacation was about to get another upgrade.


	38. Full of Memory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Pingu go to D.C., where they make more surprising discoveries

  * **Words:** 848
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Pingu
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“Why are we whispering?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and) [“Run for it!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Show Yourself - Idina Menzel, Evan Rachel Wood](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dmd7dK5-qvHc&t=NDQ1MTgyOGY5ZjFjOTQzMWEyNDU4ZDk1ODg0OTQ4NDFkMTZmZmM3OSxHeEN1c3FENA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F613626382020395008%2Ffull-of-memory&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _ya i like frozen pt 2_



—————————————————————————–

The trip to D.C. took even less time than we anticipated and Pingu and I arrived on a bus within a day. It seemed weird, taking transportation anywhere when I could fly in the same amount of time, but it did give my wings a rest. On the ride, Pingu and I spent more time catching up, and she helped me design a suit idea to send along to Fanisimo.

“I want it to be comfortable,” I said. “None of that spandex stuff. And aerodynamic.”

“Ooh,” said Pingu, “You should get it in a cool color. Do suits come in cool colors?”

I grabbed the pack of colored pencils I had shoplifted from the bus terminal convenience store. “Okay, picture this. It’s the aesthetic of a bowling alley carpet, but greyscale and a little more emo than that.”

I had never been to Washington D.C. before, so that was cool. Pingu and I took some pictures in front of the monuments before tracking down the next facility on our list. We searched the address, and it brought us to an abandoned building in the city.

“It’s… a bank,” I said, quietly, as we stood across the street. “Weird place for a secret facility.”

“Our’s was under a parking garage,” Pingu reminded me.

“Fair enough,” I whispered, and then laughed. “Wait, **why are we whispering?** ”

“No idea.”

We crossed the street and I ran through what we were coming for in my head. _Find out what happened to Zero. If she’s still here, get her out._

“Can you cover us?” I asked. “You know, create the illusion that we’re not there? We don’t know what we’re walking in to. I mean, this could be an active site. Even if the Avengers or whatever have been cleaning out facilities.”

“I can do it,” said Pingu and her usually cheerful demeanor set into a frown as she concentrates, masking us just as we break the lock on the door and step inside. I was already sweating as the air swirls around us from Pingu’s illusion and the smell of mildew hits us. The place, once again, is empty. It’s dark inside and almost completely empty—no furniture, no decorations.

“Here,” said Pingu. “Let’s try the vaults. If there’s anything hidden here, that’s where I’d start.” She let down her illusion and we jog over to the vaults. I paused at the lock, and for a second considered using my own air abilities to force it open but hesitated and deferred to Pingu to melt the lock instead. Neither of our new powers are exactly under control, and as the months have passed, I had become more hesitant to use mine, even as a party trick. It didn’t feel right.

The door swung open and Pingu and I stepped inside, both of us turning our phone flashlights on.

“Holy crap,” I said, surveying the altercations made to the vault, the additional layers of security. “HYDRA definitely had camp here.” We walked through a series of metal grating and bars until getting to the last room in the vault. I let out a sigh of disappointment. Almost everything was gone. Pingu shined her light onto the safes on the wall and I walked further into the darkness, my flashlight catching a large object in the back corner. I jumped back, nearly dropping my flashlight, and Pingu swiveled around behind me.

“What is it?”

It’s almost instinctual, the pit of fear I feel in my stomach, my muscles contracting involuntarily, the light from my phone shaking as I uncovered the object with the light. “From the Blue Lab,” I whispered. “It’s the machine.” Before I can stop myself, my stomach squeezed and I vomited on the floor, tears leaking from my eye as the acid burned my throat.

“Heckergal—” said Pingu, running over, “are you…” She saw the machine and also went silent as I sat down on the floor, trying to get my fear under control. “That’s it,” Pingu said. “Oh…”

We stared for what felt like minutes, remembering the resets, the sensation of the mouthguard between our teeth, the electricity frying our brains into oblivion, wiping out months of our lives.

“I want to go home,” Pingu said, suddenly, breaking the silence. “I’m done with this.”

I thought of Zero and wondered where she was now. There were no leads here. She could still be out there, being tortured, losing more time, forever trying to remember. But Pingu was right. This time, we had gone too far.

“Yeah,” I said. “Let’s go home.” I stood shakily and dusted off my pants, turning away from the machine. I wanted nothing more than those feelings out of my head, but I could still sense the cold metal against my arms and head, the claustrophobia, the helplessness.

“Let’s—” I started to say, but then my hearing pick up something upstairs. “Pingu. Someone’s here.” I felt sick with stress now, all of my nightmares from the last year coming to a head.

“Are you sure?”

“I hear voices,” I said. “Certain. **Run for it.** ”


	39. Darkness Goes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Pingu escape from the bank in D.C. and accidentally flex their powers to the public

  * **Words:** 1661
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Pingu, General Thaddeus Ross
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“There’s blood on your hands.” “So much for not getting involved.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[Paint It Black - Ciara](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYPWxymohWs)
  * **A/N:** _and i oop_



Pingu and I run back out of the vault and stopped right before the lobby while I carefully listened for our visitors. My heart was still pounding from our encounter with the Blue Lab reset machine and I was having a tough time holding on to myself. Everything around me seemed… separated… like I wasn’t really there. And the gallons of rootbeer and iced coffee I drank earlier in the day definitely wasn’t helping.

“What are you hearing?” Pingu asked.

“Cops,” I whispered, noting the walkie-talkie chatter. Red and blue lights bounced off the walls of the bank lobby. “Outside, actually. Lots of them.”

“Think this place was under surveillance?”

“Definitely.”

“What’s the plan?”

I peeked out from our hiding spot and try to get a better look outside. I couldn’t tell if we were surrounded, and even if I could fly, Pingu couldn’t. The worst part was, we were in D.C. Anything we pulled here would be 10x worse than, say, Utah. I tried to listen to the voices outside, get a handle on who exactly we were facing. No one was inside the bank yet.

“Okay, let’s—let’s just sit for a sec,” I said, trying to get a grip. “Think. They’re not inside yet.”

“If we use our powers here…” Pingu started. “…I don’t know. It wouldn’t be good.”

“We don’t have a lot of options,” I said.

The minutes crept by and my face became sticky with sweat. I turned and looked up at the upper corner of the lobby, where I saw a blinking red light. “Hey, Pingu,” I whispered. “I think they can see us. There’s a camera up there.”

“Can they hear us?”

“I don’t know.”

I opened my backpack, turning my face away from the camera and pulled out the face paint I always carried since my first fight, but this time, instead of the sunglasses, I had darker paint for the space around my eyes. Was it a raccoon look? Yes. Does it help? Absolutely. The white face paint was smeared on my cheeks and around my nose, aimed to throw off facial recognition technology. Pingu followed my lead and she tied a shirt around her face as a mask, leaving just enough space for her eyes. We made eye contact and her eyes smiled at me, even though now we were both in full panic mode.

“How many minutes has it been?” Pingu asked.

I checked my phone. “Fifteen. And they still haven’t done anything. Why?”

A loud voice suddenly cut through the chatter of the police outside, amplified by a speaker. “This is General Thaddeus Ross of the United States Military. Come out through the front door unarmed and with your palms out and hands above your head. We have artillery trained on this building and would advise against engaging.”

“Fuuuuuck,” Pingu said at full volume, and something clicked inside my head.

“That’s him,” I said. “Fanisimo told me. He was one of the people involved in the project when we were kids. Before HYDRA.” There was a new type of anger surging inside me and combined with my extreme fear, I wasn’t feeling so great. “Fuck this,” I said, standing up from our hiding spot.

“Heckergal—” Pingu said. “Don’t—”

“We need to get out of here,” I said. “Any means possible. I’m serious, Pingu. That’s—that’s the guy who ruined our lives. Fuck this, him trying to stop us from actually knowing our own pasts, it’s—”

Pingu shook her head, and her hands glowed red. “I want to go home.”

Already, the air in the bank started swirling around me, as I gathered wind from the drafts in the windows, from my own breath. “Let’s go, then.”

I felt out of my own body as we stepped through the bank doors, hands held above our heads, but the glow consuming our fingers, down to our wrists and up into our arms. I took another look at Pingu, and her irises burned red. When I looked back at the crowd outside, the police and military gathered in the street, all I could see was the General.

Outside, I gathered the wind between my fingers, pulling it into a shield around me and Pingu’s hands began to burn in a bright blaze.

“This is your last warning!” the voice called again, and we ignored it.

I stepped down from the bank steps and started walking towards the intersection, only focused on clearing a path so that Pingu and I could get away. I screamed and balled my hands into fists as windows shattered and a shockwave tore through the intersection. At this point, the police had started firing from behind their cars, and Pingu hurled streams of flame at the vehicles as I tossed them aside with a sharp gust of wind. More and more air surged around me, gathering around my body like a shield, and I opened up my wings to protect Pingu and I. When I looked down, my body was surrounded in a blue glow, a mass of wind and air swirling around me.

And the bullets. The bullets should have been hitting me, but they weren’t, instead just stopping at the air barrier. I stood with my arms out at let the police continue to fire—they couldn’t hurt me right now. For the first time in my life, I felt completely powerful, completely in control and in my own element, even as my mind seemed to take the backseat in this fight as if it was another Willow fighting for me.

Pingu and I stood back to back, each taking on a side of the intersection, pushing through the blockade. Even through our efforts, the military was closing in and Pingu and I were forced into close-quarters combat, trying to compensate for our low body mass with all the power we had behind it. Thaddeus Ross had stepped out of his SUV, yelling commands into a comm, and I got an idea.

“The SUVs,” I yelled at Pingu. “Are there any that we haven’t destroyed yet?”

“Just the one that guy was in,” she yelled back.

At the same time, we threw out one more burst of fire and wind and sprinted for the leftover car, the police and military in close pursuit. The General moved to block us from the SUV, but with one more powered punch, he was on the ground and Pingu had hopped into the driver’s seat, with me jumping into the back.

“Drive, drive, drive,” I screamed.

“I don’t know how!” Pingu exclaimed.

“Just step on the gas!”

The car lurched forward and within seconds, we were swerving through the streets of Washington D.C., mutants on the run and with a vengeance. I heard a helicopter in the distance.

“We have to leave the car,” I said. “As soon as we’re out of sight, escape on foot. That’s our only chance of getting out of this.”

“God, we’re so fucked,” Pingu said again, jerking the car left and causing the tires to squeal. “Is anyone behind us?”

“Not yet,” I said. “I think we need to go now.”

Pingu turned into a parking garage and we climbed out as I searched the area for cameras. _None_. Pingu pulled her mask down and we ran back to the entrance, smack into a crowd gathered on the sidewalk.

“What the…” Pingu started and just then, someone yelled at us.

“Come on, let’s go! Time to get on the bus, folks.”

I looked at the bus parked next to the curb and saw other teens getting on, some in partial costumes and stage make up. A tired-looking teacher stood at the door, ushering people on. I looked at the building behind us and saw that we were standing in front of the backstage theater door. _Theater kids._

Wordlessly, Pingu and I climbed onto the bus and walked to the back, keeping our heads down until we sat. The bus filled and pulled away from the curb. “Where are we going?” Pingu whispered.

“I don’t know,” I said. “Just play along.”

We drove for a few miles, the other teenagers on the bus screaming about the production they had just finished. Among everyone else in costume, Pingu and I fit right in.

Finally, I saw a Denny’s up ahead, and everyone cheered as the bus turned into the parking lot. _Well, this is a turn of events._ When we get off, Pingu and I went straight for the bathroom before anyone could really get a good look at us.

Under the bathroom sink, Pingu and I hurriedly washed off the face paint and ash from our faces before stripping out of the clothes we had been wearing, stuffing them into our backpacks, and changing into clean clothes.

“ **There’s blood on your hands** ,” Pingu said quietly as we changed.

“Yeah, I know,” I said. “I’m sure I’ll see it on the news tomorrow.”

“No, I mean literally,” said Pingu. “Make sure you wash that off.”

We spot-checked in the bathroom mirror and when we were sure we looked like any other disheveled teenagers, we stepped back out. The others hardly noticed us as we sat down at a booth and the table next to us hyped up their friend to sing a song from the show.

From inside the restaurant, we saw police cars zip on by and the helicopter continued to circle. Finally, the door opened, and two policemen walked into the Denny’s, saw the kids doing a reenactment of _Time Warp_ in the middle of the restaurant, and immediately walked back out, merely glancing over us.

I breathed a sigh of relief and shook my head. “ **So much for not getting involved.** ” I leaned back into the booth, completely exhausted and on the verge of falling asleep. I had never used my powers like that before, and I didn’t realize how draining it would be. “Yeah, I’m ready to go home now.”


	40. What A Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Pingu recover from the event at the bank

  * **Words:** 536
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Pingu
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“I’m fine” “Same time tomorrow?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** July 2015
  * **Song:**[December, 1963 (Oh What A Night) - Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDxhugRKZ8g)
  * **A/N:** _:)_



—————————————————————————–

Pingu and I barely slept at all that night, and when the theater group left Denny’s, we snuck away and caught an Uber to another all-night diner to sit at, where we caught naps in shifts. The ride there felt surreal, as the driver blasted music and Pingu and I sat in the backseat with 1,000-yard stares, still trying to comprehend everything that happened that night. I checked Twitter. People were talking. There were videos of us floating around. Pingu and I didn’t say a word for the entire ride.

When we got to the diner, neither of us were really hungry, and so I got an iced coffee and we sat in the booth, on our phones, as the sun began to rise.

“You okay?” I asked Pingu, around six in the morning.

“ **I’m fine**.”

“ **Same time tomorrow?** ”

Pingu finally cracked a smile and turned her phone off. “Yeah, that’s a no from me.”

I sighed and stared out the window, the city waking up and getting ready for another warm summer day. In the background, WHiH Newsfront was replaying an interview from the day before. Some guy got tasered while being interviewed. Entertaining stuff. It then cut to a story about the bank last night and I turned away. “Wanna get some food?”

“Sure,” said Pingu, and I realized that she had been watching the TV as well. “That channel’s, like, super-biased. I did a report on it for my social studies class.”

“Interesting,” I said as I opened the menu. “I’m getting pancakes and a root beer.”

“Waffles,” said Pingu. “I need a ton of waffles.”

We ordered our food and started talking again, about random things, about life, about Sokovia, about school. For a moment, I almost forgot everything that happened to us and I felt like a normal kid with her friend, enjoying an early breakfast over summer vacation. The group chat of the Lab Rats was alive with messages, already planning our next meet up.

“Think any of them saw the news yet?” I asked.

“I hope not.”

I picked at my pancakes and then leaned in, lowering my voice. “I don’t think we should tell anyone about this. You know there are already people looking for us. HYDRA. Police. And whoever General Ross calls. We have to be careful.”

“No one? What about the others?”

“I don’t think we should tell them. At least not until things calm down. And no messaging about it, talking about it in public. Like we are right now. This ends here.”

“Okay,” says Pingu. “Makes sense.” She sighs and then whispers, “What about Zero? Our sister?”

“I don’t know… I… we can text the chat about finding her in the files. But don’t tell them about how we tried to find her.”

Pingu and I go our separate ways a little while later and our goodbye takes fifteen minutes, neither of us really wanting to part. Finally, as we stood in a quiet space on the outskirts of the city, I opened my wings and got ready to take to the sky. “I’ll see you soon,” I said.

“Take care of yourself,” Pingu responded. “And we tell no one.”

“You too. Tell no one.”


	41. Wisdom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow grapples with the fallout of her trip to Boston

  * **Words:** 881
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“I think I made a mistake” “If you want we can go together.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** August 2015
  * **Song:**[Let It Be - The Beatles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDYfEBY9NM4)
  * **A/N:** _i do have a very long game for this whole big story and yes i am laying lots of and lots of groundwork and foreshadowing_



—————————————————————————–

“Is everything okay?” Marty asked me. “You haven’t seemed… right… lately.”

It was about two weeks since I had come back from Boston and we were sitting in his living room, beating the heat and half-watching the news that his dad had put on before work and we were too lazy to change.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Marty turned down the volume of the television and stared at me. “Willow?”

“What?” I asked, more irritably than I intended. “I’m fine, dude. Seriously.”

“You’re not even sleeping,” Marty said. “I hear you get up and leave in middle of the night. Your window squeaks. Where do you go?”

I had been going everywhere. Saint Giles. The 24-hour bodegas. The sky. Anywhere that wasn’t my bed, anything that kept me awake. I didn’t feel safe in New York City anymore, like any minute someone—HYDRA, the police, General Ross—would come busting through the door and take me away. What happened in Washington D.C. scared me, and the news cycle hadn’t let it drop yet. People were starting to connect that incident to the one months ago, when I had been shot, and if I wasn’t careful, I would be traced to NYC.

Every time our door buzzer rang, I jumped, and when I walked around the city, I was studying every face and constantly checking over my shoulder. I hadn’t been this scared since I left the Facility, and now that I was remembering what happened there, I may have even been more scared. I had things to lose now.

“I don’t know,” I told Marty. “Just getting some fresh air.”

“What happened in Boston?”

“Nothing happened,” I said. “Okay? Can you just stop asking?” I got up and went to the guest room, slamming the door behind me and collapsing into the bed, staring out through the tiny window. Ever since that trip, I had all of these horrible images in my head, of violent incidents, of the resets, of the constant hopelessness that had loomed over the Facility. _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

_We still don’t know what Monster was. I still don’t know where Zero is._

I sighed and flopped onto my back. At least we had a few answers, and bytes of documents to comb through for more clues.

 _And the names of the scientists. We have those, too._ I open my computer and start searching the names, looking to see if any of them are in the area, using my frustration to fuel my mission. I get a hit on one of them. _Grant Weiser. Lives in Manhattan. One of the go-betweens between SHIELD and HYDRA._

_I’d be doing everyone a favor exposing this guy._

Just as I was pulling up what I hoped would lead me to his address, there was a knock on my door and I jumped, slamming the laptop shut.

“Hey, Willow?” Marty asked. “Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to know if you ended up deciding to go to Peter’s tonight.”

 _Crap_. I had forgotten about that.

“I… I don’t know,” I said. “I just…”

“ **If you want, we can go together?** ” Marty asked.

I took a deep breath in and then out, trying to let myself calm down a little. “Okay, yeah. That would be good.” I followed him out of the room, over to the front door, where we slipped on our shoes. “ **I think I made a mistake** ,” I finally confessed. “Going back to Boston.”

Marty stopped what he was doing and looked over at me as I leaned against one of the bookshelves that framed the entrance of the apartment.

“Boston…” I started. “It was good, lots of it was good. I found my siblings and found out why we were there in the first place. But… I don’t know. Being there… I saw the machine they used to use to wipe us… the memories are all coming back even faster now. And I’m afraid that I’m not going to like them.”

“I know you,” said Marty. “You wouldn’t do anything bad.”

“But with all the resets?” I asked. “I may have. I don’t know who I am anymore.”

“You’re Willow,” said Marty. “You’re my friend. You talk way too much and drink too much iced coffee and soda. You get these crazy ideas. You’re funny. You care about us. I don’t care about who you were back then. If it wasn’t you, it wasn’t you.”

“I guess,” I said, and I realized I was holding back tears. “But what if… if I… you know… you’d probably hate me. And you’d be right.”

_What if I did really bad things? What if I hurt people?_

“I know you, Willow,” said Marty. “You’re not capable of _whatever_ you think you did. Dude, you cried when we watched _Lion King_ last week.” He paused. “And I could never hate you.”

There was something so earnest in his voice, and in that moment, I realized how much I loved my friend. _And he’s right_ , I thought. _Also, you never left the Facility. There’s not a lot of bad you could have done. There’s probably less missing time than you think. Time blurred together there._

“Okay,” I said, finally smiling. “Let’s go to Peter’s. I heard Aunt May’s getting pizza.”


	42. Two Kids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Peter go searching for parts for Peter’s computer

  * **Words:** 654
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“Prepare to be amazed.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** August 2015
  * **Song:**[Renegades - X Ambassadors](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j741TUIET0)
  * **A/N:** _willow needed a break lmao_



—————————————————————————–

We had a week before school started again and all of us were trying to make the best of it. On this particular evening, Peter and I were taking the subway from one used electronics store to the next, trying to find parts for his computer. I was feeling a little better, though not by much. The only thing keeping me sane was the thought of taking down that first guy, Grant Weiser, as soon as I could. In the meantime, I was trying to live my life as normal as possible.

* * *

“If this next one is a bust,” I said, “we should check the dumpsters and curbs near Kate’s apartment. People are always leaving stuff there.”

Peter looked down at his checklist. “Sounds good. I can’t believe we haven’t been able to find _any_ of this stuff yet. Or at least… you know… cheap.” He smiled. “I bet MSST has some _awesome_ tech.”

“Dude,” I said. “You’re so right.” I leaned forward on the seat to think. “I’m definitely taking robotics.”

“Yes!” said Peter. “And Academic Decathlon? It’s just like Quiz Bowl!”

“Heck yes,” I said. I ticked activities off on my fingers. “Robotics. Academic Decathlon. Ooh, and theater. I looked it up, and they have rehearsal right after school.”

“What about band?” Peter asked. “I think Ned’s doing band, too.”

I thought for a moment. “Don’t they have night rehearsals?”

“I mean, sometimes. I think?”

I shook my head. “Can’t. Homework.” _I need to keep my nights open._

We reached our stop and got off, jogging up the stairs and into the warm evening on the street. The sky was a pleasant shade of orange, already folding into red on the horizon, and the city seemed especially alive that night. Peter pointed at a store about a block down. “Okay, that’s the one.”

“Race you to it,” I said. We ran all the way down to the store, dodging pedestrians and leaping over the trash bags left on the curb. I reached the storefront before Peter, though not by much.

“I’ll win someday,” Peter said, panting and laughing as he pushed his hair back out of his face.

“Yeah, okay,” I said, opening the door.

Peter had been using all sorts of things to cool his CPU, but the summer heat was beginning to get to his machine, and he was afraid of it overheating. The dinky fan we bought at the dollar store helped, but not by much. We browsed through the store, looking for something within his price range.

“Oh!” I exclaimed, digging a piece out of the “discount” bin. “ **Prepare to be amazed,** ” I said, holding a cooler up.

Peter came over and examined it. “Sweet,” he said. He examined the part. “Oh wait, this wouldn’t fit the socket,” he said, showing me. “Good eye though.”

We kept looking, but everything else was out of his price range. “We’ll try dumpster diving,” I said. “It’s cheaper that way anyway. It’s _free_.”

We left the store and were back on the street, enjoying the summer night, Peter telling me a story of something dumb Ned had done a few weeks ago when I was in Boston. I tried as hard as I could to hold on to the moment, to not let it get ruined by any negative thoughts. _If they haven’t found me by now, then they won’t. I’m safe. I’m safe._

We took a detour to pass by the Avengers’ Tower (Peter’s idea), and I kept my head down as he stared up at it. “Do you think they’re in there right now?” Peter asked.

 _Let’s hope not_. I mustered the courage to look up with him and shrugged. “Uh… no idea. Wanna get some food on the way back?”

Peter agreed and we left the tower behind, while I avoided eye contact with every person we passed. _Things will go back to normal soon. They have to._


	43. Her Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow returns to work with Jessica

  * **Words:** 590
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“It’s 8:30, I have a hangover and you’re annoying me.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and) [“Don’t call me that!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** August 2015
  * **Song:**[Uptown Girl - Billy Joel](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DH6M0EulApMM&t=Y2IwYzNmNjAxNzkxYjU1ZGIzOWU4NGFlMzBjODIxNDUxY2UzMGM3Ziw3YUJMM3hyag%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F614594624377487360%2Fher-time&m=1)

  * **A/N:** _I figured out the rest of an arc that occurs like……. 9 months from now lmao_



—————————————————————————–

I liked to work on the floor next to Jessica’s couch, and today was no different. It was busy at Alias Investigations this summer—I guess a whole lot of people were up to no good. Jessica was sitting at her desk, jacket still on after returning from casework earlier in the morning, and I shuffled through my backpack, pulling out a flash drive of data from earlier in the week. As usual, the binoculars she gave me were around my neck and they had grown on me even more than I expected.

After hanging up on a call, I felt Jessica watching me from across the room. “You lied to me last week,” she said suddenly, and I looked up from my laptop.

“What?”

“Last week. When you said you were going to Boston to visit some friends.”

“But I did go there,” I said. “I don’t know why—”

“Then why did your phone say you were in D.C.?” Jessica asked.

 _Shit._ I forgot I had shared my location with her ages ago, back when the Kilgrave stuff was happening. “Phones can be wrong,” I said quickly. “It was probably an error.”

Jessica silently stared at her laptop screen and for a moment, I thought she’d drop the subject, but then she turned the screen around for me to see, with a Youtube video pulled up. “So, this isn’t you?” It was a grainy cellphone video of the bank incident, my wings clearly visible, as well as Pingu and I using our powers.

“That’s…”

“Look, **it’s 8:30, I have a hangover, and you’re annoying me**. Don’t bullshit me.”

“Okay, maybe it was me!” I said. “Why do you care? I didn’t get caught. I’m fine. It was just an accident. And stop stalking my location.” I didn’t mean to raise my voice, but I did anyway.

She shot a glare at me and huffed as she pulled the laptop back to face her chair. “Willow, if you get caught, if _anyone_ finds out what you did or what you can do, that’s it. They’ll put you away. For good. You won’t get a second chance. You won’t get out.”

“I won’t get caught,” I say. “That was an accident.”

“Was it?”

_Was it?_

“I know you’re young,” Jessica continued, “but there’s a whole world out there of people looking for you now. You know that, right? And even if the _good guys_ ,” she said, using air quotes, “get to you first, they won’t let you out of their sight. Ever. Have you heard the news? What they’re saying about people with abilities? What will they think about some brainwashed ex-HYDRA experiment?”

“ **Don’t call me that**.”

“I’m being honest. That’s what they’ll say about you.” Her phone rung and with a final glare, she picked it up.

I felt my face redden as I turned back to my own computer. _Does she think I don’t know this already? I am being careful._ My mouse hovered over the open browser tab I had on the scientist I was planning to expose that week. _I am being careful, right?_ I made a mental note to turn off my phone before I did anything else, or at least turn off my location for a while. Sometimes, Jessica decided to give a shit at the worst possible time.

I took a sip from the root beer I had on the floor next to me and tried to focus back on the work Jessica had piled onto me, putting headphones in and blasting Billy Joel. _I’m too careful to be caught._


	44. Dance With Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow exposes ex-HYDRA scientist Grant Weiser

  * **Words:** 927
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren
  * **Prompt/Tag:**[“I believe you dropped this.” “You look like a monkey who’s been strategically shaved.” “What are you doing in my house?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** August 2015
  * **Song:**[Danse Macabre - Camille Saint-Saëns](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DYyknBTm_YyM&t=MWZkYTY0OTA0MTVlYWJhMTM4MjA1N2QyZTJhYzgzNmM2Y2E1OTZjZixKRkxHSGlwbQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F614700281444352000%2Fdance-with-death&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _…_



—————————————————————————–

Here’s a little-known fact that you can’t tell anyone: the credit card door unlocking trick _does_ work. It takes some perseverance if you’ve never done it before and it takes the right type of door and right type of card, but it works.

That’s how I got into Grant Weiser’s house.

He wasn’t home—I had checked his Facebook and knew that he was out at dinner with some coworkers. His house was in the suburbs of New York City, with a small porch and yard and rich neighbors up and down the block. I wondered if HYDRA paid for the place when he fled. My mask stayed drawn over my lower face and I had applied the usual makeup to obscure the rest of my features, including my eyes. The look seemed to have worked for me in Washington D.C.—no one had identified me yet—so I went with what was working.

I rifled through his office desk, picked through documents, but found nothing related to HYDRA. Everything that tied him to the organization was in the digital files we had uncovered back at the Boston Facility. _That’s fine_. I found a book of codes and wrote down his streaming passwords.

It was then that I heard keys in the front door, and I stood in the darkness of his living room, waiting for him to come inside. The door opened and he stumbled in, dropping his wallet as he juggled a few bags of groceries. _Whole Foods._ He didn’t see me and shut his door with his foot as he brought the packages into the kitchen.

I picked his wallet off the floor and stared at him down the hallway to the kitchen. His hair was bushy and red, and his beard was carefully cut into some sort of avant-garde style. He had gotten a haircut since the Facility ID photos were taken, but it was definitely him.

“ **I believe you dropped this** ,” I called down the hallway, holding up the wallet. My heart was pounding, but for some reason, I didn’t find myself scared. I was excited. He jumped and I saw him reach for a drawer under the kitchen island, but I held my hands up in a warning. “I wouldn’t do that.”

“Who…”

“I liked your old hair cut better,” I told him, pulling out his new ID. “Now, **you look like a monkey who’s been strategically shaved.** ”

“ **What are you doing in my house?** ” he demanded.

I kept my hands out in front of me, in case he did lash out and slowly advanced down the hall, trying to keep track of all the questions I had to ask. “Where is Subject Zero? Do you know where she is?”

“What? Who?” He stepped back and bumped into the counter behind him.

“What was _Monster_?” I asked, remember the regular refrain from the Facility. _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

“Look, is it money that you want? I can get you money,” he said. “I—”

“No, no, I don’t want that.” _Well, actually… no. Focus._ “So, your I.D. says Todd Strauss.” I made a face. “Really? Out of all the fake names you could have picked you picked _Todd?”_ I was doing my usual routine of making jokes to mask my fear, and it seemed that Grant hadn’t picked up on my hesitation yet. “Look, Grant, I-I know what you did. I have copies of all the evidence. You were a lab technician, right? At the Boston lab? Of course, I wouldn’t remember, considering how many resets you did, but…”

Grant pulled out his cell phone. “I’m calling the police.”

“I already called them,” I said. “They know who you are. What you did. _Hail Hydra_ and all that? So, they’re on their way. You won’t make it a block before being caught.”

“HYDRA will find you, they will—” _And there we go._

I thought of another question to ask before the police arrived. “Speaking of, what about Doctor Dawn Turner? Do you know where she went?”

He started laughing and it threw me off. I took a step back into the dark. “You’ve never done this before, have you?” he asked. “How old are you? Twelve? Thirteen?”

“Where is Doctor Turner?”

“That psycho bitch? She’s gone, you’ll—”

Blue and red lights filled the dark corridor and I turned to see police cars piling up outside on the street. In a moment of panic, Grant made a run for the back door and I shot a burst of wind from my hands, knocking him flat and causing him to bust his face on the tiled floor.

“What the _fuck!”_ he yelled as I saw a dark SUV also pull up to the scene. It was time to go.

“You ruined my life,” I said. “Now I’m ruining all of yours.” I ran for the same back door he had run for and into his tiny back patio, where I opened my wings and with a few flaps, sailed up and out of view of the cops out front. I settled down onto a roof across the street and watched as they arrested him, while I leaked the rest of the documents on him to the internet. It was beyond satisfying and I grinned as I texted the Lab Rats and munched on the dried mango I had grabbed from his groceries while running out.

_> Grant Weiser, HYDRA Lab Tech, just got arrested thanks to yours truly. Heckergal: 1._

I could hardly wait to pick another target.


	45. No Turning Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and her friends have one more summer hang before going back to school and their first days of high school at Midtown School of Science and Technology

  * **Words:** 411
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Where’s your God now?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
    * [“I will if you will.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** August 2015
  * **Song:**[Dog Days Are Over - Florence & The Machine](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsszAVSx4Wwo&t=OGM1NDc0YWZiZGEzY2YwNTdjOTBiMTkyYzhmNGUwNWM0MTAzYzA4MixQb01sQ2dXdw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F614799457642528768%2Fno-turning-back&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _…_



—————————————————————————–

It was unseasonably chilly on our last hang of the summer. Ned, Peter, Kate, Marty, and I sat around Peter’s living room, playing Mario Kart on the Wii that Kate brought.

“ **Where is your God now?** ” I yelled as I flung a green shell at Kate’s Baby Peach bike ahead of me, causing her to stall out.

“What? How was that even possible?” Kate asked. “That was a _green_ shell.”

“It’s called _aiming_ ,” Ned said.

I surged ahead of Kate, but Peter was still far ahead of us and I had a feeling I wouldn’t be able to catch up with only half a lap left. It was only a few nights after the Grant Weiser success, and I was still riding that high. I was obsessively checking the news for any updates on the event and for the first time, I felt like I was finally getting back at them. I knew I had to be careful and take time for things to cool down, but still.

It was getting hard to keep track of all the times I had been exposed, and so I made a resolution to be more careful. _When HYDRA was busted open and files were leaked. That first time, when I got shot. The bank in Washington. Grant? Would they believe him if they said someone knocked him down without touching him? And broke into his house? Let’s hope not._

I think part of me was hoping that if I wanted to, I could stop all of this now and live as normal a life as possible. But Jessica’s lecture from the other day was still bothering me, and I was starting to think that even if I did stop now, I wouldn’t be out of the woods. It would be just a matter of time. _I may as well do as much as I can before that happens._

_But it won’t happen._ _With school starting, I probably won’t be able to get another agent until October anyways._

After Mario Kart, we shared our schedules for classes and talked about teachers, new clubs, and our hopes for the school year. For me, I was hoping for another year of not attracting attention. Hoping my siblings and I finally found peace. Not getting caught by HYDRA, the police, or the Men in Black. _Another year in the life._

“—I’m hoping for aliens,” Kate said, and I was drawn back into the conversation. “In fifth grade we had aliens and I missed it because my mom made me duck and cover.”

“What, you wanna investigate some aliens this year?” Marty asked.

“ **I will if you guys will**.”

“No,” Ned groaned. “Can we just have a normal year?”

“I’m with Ned,” I said, and Marty gave me a look. _Yeah, right_.

“I’m excited,” said Peter, standing up. “I don’t know why, but I think this is going to be a really good year.”

“Yeah?” I asked, beginning to smile.

“Yeah.”


	46. On My Own

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and her friends have their first day of high school

  * **Words:** 1010
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray, Marty Fields, Ethan Kim
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Are you seriously still angry at me?” “You ate the last donut!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“I know you don’t care, you don’t have to pretend.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** September 2015
  * **Song:**[Gravel To Tempo - Hayley Kiyoko](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DhZlP5jiwfQg&t=NzFlNDNhNDk5MWUwMjMyNjlkNTMwNjBjNDdlOTNmZTEyNTcyZTM4Myx3YmRFM2FOcw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F615432386024439808%2Fon-my-own&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _get ready for the worst school year ever lol_



—————————————————————————–

First day of high school. It was hard to believe that I had made it this far. To be honest, growing up at the Facility I didn’t think I would make it to my teen years, but here I was. Fourteen years old, starting _high school. Take that, Dr. Turner._

Marty and I left for school in a rush, as usual, tossing items into our backpacks and slipping our shoes on as we waited for the elevator down. We just caught our train, ducking between the doors just as they were about to close.

“ **Are you seriously still angry at me?** ” I asked him, as he fixed his hair using his phone screen.

“ **You ate the last donut!** ” he exclaimed. “I was saving that!”

“It was nearly stale! Your dad bought them on Saturday!”

Marty put on a fake pout. “Well, thanks to you my high school career is now _ruined_.”

We met up with Ned, Kate, and Peter outside the school and cut across the football fields and the driveway before running up the steps of the school. I couldn’t believe how big the school was and it seemed to dwarf our middle school. I realized that my heart was pounding as we walked up the last few steps. I had no older siblings and my only point of reference to high school were some of the 80s movies that Marty made me watch when I first arrived in New York. This school was nothing like those.

“Okay, I have Spanish after homeroom,” Ned said. “Who has that in room 414?”

Me and Peter both raised our hands and Marty looked down at his phone apprehensively as we stood in the school lobby, the morning announcements playing over the TV while the tide of students flowed around us, some carry tech and projects from over the summer. Our freshmen class had an orientation a few days ago, but somehow the school was completely different now that it was filled with students.

“I have biology in 113 for my homeroom,” I said. “No one else, right?”

The others shook their heads and the first bell rang, indicating that we needed to split off to our classes. I nodded at Peter and Ned. “Uh… I see you guys in an hour?”

“Sounds good!” said Peter. “I’ll save you a seat!”

“Are you going to be late?” Ned asked, considering I was somehow always late to our classes last year.

“Probably,” I said, and Marty groaned.

“Will you ever be on time for anything?” Marty asked.

“Probably not.”

“Shit,” Kate said, checking her schedule. “My homeroom is on the other side of the school. I’ll see you guys later!”

We parted ways and suddenly I was walking the hallways alone, feeling extra self-conscious, hoping my dress and jacket were hiding the wings. _What if they aren’t and everyone can see them, and no one is saying anything?_

I checked the number outside my homeroom door about three times before having the confidence to walk in and sit down, picking a seat in the back and putting my bag down. I was taking in the room, well decorated, like the teacher had the same room for a while, just as he snapped his fingers and got my attention. “Uh uh uh, what’s your last name?”

“Wren?” I said.

“When’s your birthday?”

“August 20th,” I said, though to be honest, that was just a random date Hogarth and I picked that sounded about right.

“All right, Miss Wren, your seat is right there,” the teacher said, pointing at a desk near the front of the room. “I assigned seats based on birthdays.”

I sighed and picked up my bag, dragging it to the new seat. “Hey, what’s up?” the kid next to me said, and I turned to look at him.

“Hey?” I cleared my throat. “Uh… I’m Willow. Wren.” I managed a nervous smile.

“Oh cool,” he said. “I’m Ethan. Kim.”

“Nice to meet you?” I said, overanalyzing everything I was saying, hoping nothing came out weird or awkward. I had some extreme fear that instead of something normal, I would blurt out something like “ _oh, by the way, if a government agent comes knocking, tell them I’m not here._ ” Which, again, was more of an intrusive thought than anything else, but still.

“So… are you excited to start at MSST? Like classes and stuff?” Ethan asked. I blinked, taken aback by the question. **_I know you don’t care, you don’t have to pretend_**. Or maybe he did. Now I found myself wondering if Ethan was a HYDRA plant or something, because he seemed to be way too friendly. _Or maybe he’s just like Peter or Ned or Kate or Marty. Maybe he actually wants to be friends with you._

“Yeah, I’m excited,” I finally said. “Probably going to join decathlon and robotics.”

“Oh, no way!” Ethan said. “That’s cool.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah, cool.”

There was a pause before I realized I should say something back. “What about you? Any good clubs?”

“Oh,” said Ethan, shrugging. “I do like film tech and stuff. AV Club.”

“Like the morning announcements?” I asked, remembering the broadcast in the halls.

“Yeah,” he said. “But like not as an announcer.” He mimed filming. “Like, as a cameraman.”

“Right, okay,” I said. “Yeah, that’s cool.”

The bell rang again just as our conversation trickled to a halt and I played it back in my head. _I think that was pretty all right._ Still, I couldn’t wait to get to Spanish and see the others.

For some reason, as hard as I tried, I could only see myself as _other_ , set apart from the other students by some invisible line. Sometimes, the line seemed almost invisible, like a string I could step over when ready. Other times, it seemed like an impenetrable wall, where I could sometimes hear the other side or see it if I jumped, but I would never cross it and be on the other side. And even if I did, that wall would always be there.


	47. Nightfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow busts ex-Hydra scientist Victor Volkov

  * **Words:** 1707
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Kate Gray
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“We’re done.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** September 2015
  * **Song:**[Nightfall - Josep Alba](https://open.spotify.com/album/1QlQTmNJSAroXlf82gRaAA?highlight=spotify:track:00vuLLQm8cgQy3S6KBiIDP)
  * **A/N:** _in terms of an investigation this is like the most slow burn thing ever but idc you think Hydra’s gonna let her find answers this easily? wrong!!! also she’s being reckless and stupid as fuck soooooo shit winds are a-comin’_



—————————————————————————–

I didn’t mean to engage with any more ex-Facility scientists for the time being, but I couldn’t stop thinking about how many more were out there, especially when one pinged my news notifications I had set up for the names I was tracking.

 _Victor Volkov._ In NYC for a conference. Staying at a Hilton. One of the fancy ones, with a view of Times Square.

I say I didn’t mean to engage, but I know I did, especially when I packed my face paint and mask in my backpack before school that morning, and slipped a knife into a pocket of my jeans. _Just in case,_ I had told myself. _Just in case._

I hung out after school with Kate that Friday, spending the afternoon at tryouts for the MSST musical production of _Heathers_. As much as I wanted to be on the stage, I knew I wouldn’t be able to do that. The costume situation alone would be a nightmare. So, I signed up as a stagehand and watched Kate try out. She wasn’t hoping for any particular role, she just wanted to be in the ensemble. While Kate waited for general auditions, I sat in the auditorium seating, reading up on Victor Volkov on my phone.

 _I shouldn’t be doing this_ , I thought. _I should just… ignore this for now. I said I wouldn’t do anything else crazy for a while._ But it was like an itch I needed to scratch, I could hardly think of anything else, knowing that he was in the city. While Kate sat on the stage, waiting for her turn, I silently pulled out my laptop and started sifting through all the documents I had related to Volkov. I placed them all into a folder and uploaded it to a file share online, ready to be leaked when I was ready to confront him. Kate finally got her turn and I listened to her sing, my leg bouncing as I sat, thinking about my next move.

“You did great!” I said to Kate as she jumped down off the stage at the end of the auditions. “You’ll definitely get in. I didn’t know you sang!”

“Mostly just when I’m home alone,” Kate laughed. “Wanna go get food or something on the way home?”

“Ah, I would,” I said. “But I gotta get home and finish an assignment due at midnight. Maybe tomorrow afternoon we can get lunch with the gang?”

“Works for me,” Kate said, shrugging. “I’ll text the chat!”

We parted ways and I checked the subway map for the fastest route to the Hilton that Volkov was staying at. _How do I plan to do this? You have to be so, so careful. One wrong move and this whole Rat Revolution is finished._ I pulled up a picture of the scientist, memorizing his face as I rode the subway and then tried to figure out the best way to get his room number without raising suspicion. _What if he’s not in the room? What if he is? Crap, I really should have planned this out more. I could call room service and get something delivered to his room and left outside. That’s not such a bad idea. Except what if my call is traced? Would they trace it? No one would care, right? Because twenty minutes later a neo-Nazi gets arrested._

As I stood outside the hotel, I realized that the inside was packed with people. Most people were just arriving for the conference. _Wait a minute_.

I stepped inside and held my phone up to my ear as I walked closer to the front desk, finally taking the chair next to it. “Yeah, dad,” I said into my phone. “Text me when you’re on your way. I’m waiting to check-in. Okay.” The lady at the front desk hardly glanced at me as I gave her a smile and pretended to end the call. “He should be here soon,” I told her. “It’s on his card.” _That’s how hotels work, right? I don’t remember._

I sat in the chair and watched conference attendees arriving, each signing in at the front desk, getting their room key and number, and heading to the elevators. The minutes ticked by and I grew antsy. _What if he already got here—_

The sliding doors opened and I recognized him immediately, right down to the mole on his left cheek. I sucked in a breath, my heart pounding as I stared down at my phone.

“Mr. Volkov,” he said, and I felt a flash of anger that he didn’t even need to change his identity, that he was just able to move on after the Facility.

“Okay,” said the woman at the front desk. “Room 845.”

_Game time._

I got up, putting my phone to my ear as I stepped back outside onto the street, pretending to take another call, and as soon as I was out of sight of the lobby, I ducked into the alley next to the hotel. “Let’s go, Willow, let’s go,” I murmured. I put on the face paint, the mask over my lower face, and shrugged off my sweatshirt, letting my wings out if I needed a quick exit. I shivered in the alley, afraid that at any moment, someone else could stumble down it and catch me.

I hopped on a VPN app on my phone and leaked the files before uploading them to the tip line that a government agency had set up after the HYDRA/SHIELD split. _It’ll only take them a few minutes to respond once they verify this information. We’re on the clock now._ Based on the other raids I had studied; they didn’t waste time in nabbing the ex-HYDRA agents.

The last part was the hardest, getting to Volkov’s room _right_ before the police did. Just long enough to see if he knew anything about Subject Zero or where Dr. Turner was now. Face covered, I flew up to the roof and took the access stairs down to his floor, running down the hallway until I got to Room 845. I felt almost sick again, being out in the open like this. Anyone could turn the corner and see me at any moment. I heard the TV on inside and knocked before stepping out of sight of the peephole. Inside, there were footsteps and the door opened a crack. “Hello?” a man called. _Volkov._

I jumped into sight and shot a blast of air from my hands, pushing the door fully open and Volkov down as I stepped in after him and closed the door. He yelled and scrambled for his cell phone, but I shook my head and held my hands up.

“Don’t,” he warned. “They will look for me.” The television continued to blare in the background, some Russian news network.

“What happened to Subject Zero?” I asked, taking a step forward. “I know you worked at the Boston Facility. Where is she now?”

“I don’t know her,” he said, still on the floor where he had fallen. “God, did they send you? I am still faithful. Please.”

“What about Doctor Dawn Turner?” I asked. “What about her?”

“I don’t… I don’t know!”

“What was Monster?”

“Monster?” he repeated, and then he started laughing like the other man had. “Oh, you're one of them, aren't you? One of the wonders? Do you know anything?” Volkov took my silence as an answer and he got off the floor. His sudden courage made me nervous. “Better enjoy your freedom while you can. Cut off the head ... two more will grow back. You know?”

“What was Monster?”

“ _Sumerkey_ ,” he whispered.

“Su Mer Key?” I repeated under my breath. Something felt wrong and my heart started pounding again, this time like it would explode out of my chest. I heard the chattering of comms approaching us—authorities closing in now—and my brain had just gone blank. I was frozen. _Willow, Willow snap out of it._ “ **What the hell is that supposed to mean?** ”

The comms were close now and the television seemed to get louder and louder, and just as Volkov opened his mouth again, I shook my head. “No, **we’re done.** Thanks for nothing.” I ran for the window and flung it open, throwing myself out of it as I dodged the oncoming raid. I soared up, back to the rooftops, feeling like I was suffocating in the cool air. I didn’t even really land, more just crashed down on the rooftop. Before I could forget, almost in a trance, I pulled a Sharpie from my backpack, one that I had always carried with me, even though I wasn’t sure why anymore. Halfway up my arm, in a space usually hidden by a sleeve at the Facility, I scrawled the phrase in black ink. _Sumerkey._ I knew this. I had done it before.

_October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

_Sumerkey._

I stared at the word, almost forgetting where I was for a moment, remembering how I used to do this all the time at the Facility. _I stole a Sharpie. Hid it under my mattress. After each reset, I would find the word eventually._

It had been such an integral habit, something I hardly thought of, that as soon as I left the Facility I stopped doing it. There was no need to. I forgot.

_Until now._

_Sumerkey._ It was on my arm now; I wouldn’t forget it again. _Why did I do this? Why did I stop?_ Repeating the word, staring at it made me think of the Facility, my friends. _Why?_

_Sumerkey. Heckergal. I’m… fourteen years old. I’ve been here since I was six. These are my friends. I sleep with a stuffed…_

“Elephant,” I said out loud, the words leaving my mouth before my brain processed them. “I sleep with a stuffed elephant.”

As I watched the authorities march Victor Volkov out of the hotel and into one of the waiting vehicles down below, I shook my head, realizing that Volkov _had_ given me a lead. _Sumerkey_ was how Monster started.

_From now on, I’m wearing headphones when I do these operations. I’m not risking it. And from now on, Sumerkey stays on my arm again._


	48. Busy Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow settles into the new school year and discovers Marty has been keeping a secret from her

  * **Words:** 1074
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Annabel Carson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Don’t I make you happy?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“Someplace high so I can jump off it.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
    * [“Dramatic? You think I’m being dramatic now? Oh! You just wait! I’ll show you dramatic!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/188777324607/writing-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** September 2015
  * **Song:**[Tiny Dancer - Elton John](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DaqlGlaNlcWE&t=ZmViZGYxMGUyZWRiNzE1YmZjNzk3Y2QxYTZlODhjZWVjNDE1Y2MxMyw4TFNycEJlVA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F616338316543066112%2Fbusy-day&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _here’s the thing. i love willow. but also sometimes (most of the time) she sucks at communication_



—————————————————————————–

The first few weeks of high school flew by, and I was busier than ever before. Kate got a part in the fall musical with me helping out backstage, I joined Academic Decathlon with Peter and Ned and convinced Peter to join robotics with me. Marty tried out for the soccer team and we often walked home together after his practice and my rehearsals. When I met Marty by the gymnasium, that Thursday, someone else was also waiting with him.

“Hey, Willow,” Marty said. “Ready to go?”

I stared at the other girl with him, Annabel, seeing her in person for the first time.

“Oh, this is Annabel,” said Marty. “Annabel, this is Willow. She’s my…”

“…roommate,” I said quickly, and then realized how weird that sounded.

Annabel was unfairly pretty, with long dirty blonde and wavy hair, clear skin, and a smile I could only describe as smug. “Hey, Willow. So, like, you guys live together?”

“Yeah,” I said, and wondered how much Marty had told her.

“Annabel’s taking the subway with us until her stop,” Marty explained.

“Cool.”

The two of them talked all the way out of school, comparing their soccer teams—Annabel was on the girls’ team—and about something funny that a mutual friend had done in class that day. I walked behind them on the sidewalk, half-tempted to put my headphones in and tune them out. I was about to as we descended to the train platform and Annabel caught my attention. “So… like… where did you move from?” she asked. “Are you guys like cousins or…”

“Cousins,” I said quickly, at the same time that Marty said “stepsister.”

Annabel raised an eyebrow.

“Uh… just kidding,” I said.

“Okay…” Annabel said, shooting Marty a look.

“But I’m from Boston,” I said, trying to save the conversation. “That’s where I moved from.”

“Oh, what part?” Annabel said. “My grandma lives there.”

 _Crap, I don’t know anything about the city itself._ “I didn’t live there long,” I said. “I don’t really know.”

“You don’t know what neighborhood you lived in?”

“Foster,” Marty said suddenly, snapping his fingers. “Uh… foster kid. Sorry, I should’ve explained that.”

“Right,” I said.

“Your _dad_ took in a foster kid?” Annabel asked. “Really?”

“I mean, I’m here, aren’t I?” I said.

Marty changed the course of the conversation by asking her about the Spanish homework they had, and I finally put my headphones in until Marty and I got to our stop. I wasn’t sure what to make of Annabel, but I had a hard time trusting her. Too many questions. Her smile seemed fake. Eventually, we split ways at Annabel’s stop. “Bye Marty!” she called. “And Willow!” I gave a half-wave and while Marty scrolled through Reddit on his phone, I turned my music up. We didn’t talk until we got back to the apartment. On Thursday nights, Marty’s dad worked late, which meant we were on our own for dinner.

“Hey,” I said, nudging Marty as he unlocked the apartment door. “Wanna order pizza?”

“As long as it’s not Dominos.”

I made a face but agreed and he placed the order as I turned on the TV. “So… Annabel?” I asked. “Are you guys… like…”

“We’re dating,” Marty said suddenly, and I nearly dropped the TV remote.

“What? Since when? Why?”

“Since this summer,” said Marty, plopping down on the couch. “We started hanging out when you were in Boston.”

“Wait, you’ve been dating for _two months?_ ” I asked. _How could I have missed this? What if she was… I don’t know… evil or something? Why didn’t Marty tell me?_ There was a pit in my stomach as I sat down on the couch and pretended to be more interested in what was on the TV. “Why?”

“Because she makes me happy, Willow. That’s why. That’s what people do.”

“ **Don’t I make you happy?** ” I said, as a joke, but it sounded sincere for a moment.

“You know what I mean.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, my voice sounding tiny and far away.

“Because…” Marty sighed and leaned back on the couch, staring up at the ceiling. “Because I knew this is how you’d get! You’d want to know everything about her, all of her social media accounts so you can like… I don’t know… make sure she’s not a Nazi or something… you’d want to know what her parents do… it’s just… this is my thing! And I don’t want you involved.”

“Dude, are you serious?”

Marty shrugged. “Look, I know you have your reasons. I know you have to look out for yourself. But you don’t have to look out for me too. Not everyone is out to get you or me. Annabel is just really nice and funny and I like her. Her friend group is nice, too. We’re all on the soccer teams. That’s it. End of story.”

“Why are you being so…” I struggled to find the right word. “Why are you being so mean?”

“Seriously?” He reached for the remote and turned the volume of the TV down. “I’m not being mean! It’s just true. You get paranoid, you make everyone else feel awkward and I end up having to cover for you. So, please, don’t ruin this for me. Annabel… these people… I really like them.”

 _Is that really what I do? Is that what other people think about me?_ “Fuck,” I said, and got up, slipping my shoes back on.

“Where are you going?”

“ **Someplace high so I can jump off it.** Don’t worry, I’ll make sure your new friends are invited to the funeral.” ****

“Willow, look, we’re bound to make new friends. I mean, I love the others, you know, Peter, Ned, and Kate, but they’re just…”

“What?”

“You know… nerds.”

“We go to the same school! Oh, so you made the soccer team so now you’re some big dumb jock boy?”

“You’re being so dramatic over this,” Marty said.

“ **Dramatic? You think I’m being dramatic _now_? Oh! You just wait! I’ll show you dramatic!** I’m gonna go out. Jump off some buildings.” I opened the apartment door and stepped out, still trying to figure out how to process this. There were never social dynamics like this at the Facility and it was exhausting.

“Fine! Bye!” Marty yelled back. And then… “Should I text you when the pizza gets here?”

I sighed and stuck my head back through the doorway. “Yes, please.”


	49. Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow tries to reconcile her fight with Marty

  * **Words:** 780
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Trish Walker
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [F: “Forget it. It doesn’t even matter anymore.”](https://ofpoemsandprompts.tumblr.com/post/161121816654/alphabet-prompts)
    * [“You look different.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** September 2015
  * **Song:**[Atlas: Fear - Sleeping at Last](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DF8xDXLrz9fs&t=N2NmZTE4Zjc1OTI1ODNlNDc5MDhmYzQ4MDcwMzczYzA3ZGNmNzc3MSxrYkFUVVdkUA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F616527104794918912%2Ffear&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _willow bb just say sorry_



—————————————————————————–

Sometimes, I really suck at being a person. Today was one of those days. I couldn’t stop replaying my conversation with Marty in my head, wondering where I went wrong. _God, why can’t I do this right? Why can’t I just be normal and be happy for him? It’s been almost a year. Why can’t I just be normal now?_

I had left the apartment and ended up on the roof, thinking for a moment before throwing myself off, letting the wind catch my wings, and pull me up above the clouds. I let out a scream of frustration and shot across the sky, trying to go faster and faster.

_It’s not my fault I’m like this. I can’t help it. Can I?_

_October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._

_Sumerkey._

I thought that after getting out of the Facility and getting a real life together, I could be normal. I could be just like Marty and Peter and Kate and Ned. Like Annabel. _It’s not fair._

I ducked below the clouds and found my way back to our building, landing on the roof and tucking my wings in tight next to my spine as I caught my breath. Not knowing what to do now, I pulled out my phone and called Trish.

“Willow?” she answered. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?” Besides, when I hung out with her at Jessica’s, I tended to call her when I was in a social crisis, which seemed to be a lot lately and I was starting to feel bad.

“Oh, I’m fine… fine,” I said. “Sorry to scare you. I just need advice and I didn’t know who to ask because Jessica is…”

“Jessica.”

“Yeah. Is it okay…?”

“It’s always okay,” said Trish and I let out a sigh of relief. “What’s wrong?”

I told her about what happened with Marty and how I didn’t know where I went wrong or how to fix it. Just that I did something wrong. “… and so… uh… I don’t know what to do now. And maybe he hates me or… I don’t know…”

“Okay, take a deep breath,” said Trish. “Look, did you apologize yet?”

“…no?”

“Well, that’s where you start.”

“But what if he’s the one that should apologize?”

We kept talking as I go back down to our floor and as I stand outside the apartment door, Trish wished me luck. “You’re going to be okay,” she said. “It’s a learning process.”

“But what if I’m still mad at him?”

“You have to take out your anger on something else. Not your friend.”

I opened the apartment door and head straight for the bathroom, not even saying hi to Marty. I was still not ready to talk to him. After locking myself in, I stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror, at my hair knotted from the wind and the scowl still on my face. I tried to comb my hand through my hair, but it got caught and tugged on my scalp. In a final moment of anger, I grabbed the scissors on the medicine shelf and cut off the tangled lock of hair in one motion.

“Oh my God,” I said aloud as it fell to the floor. “Why did I do that?”

I stepped back into the living room just as Marty was returning with a box of pizza.

“ **You look… different** ,” Marty said.

“Is it that bad? It was an accident.”

Marty shrugged and handed me a paper plate, acting like nothing happened only minutes before.

“Look,” I started. “I need to—”

“ **Forget it,”** Marty said. “ **It doesn’t even matter anymore.** Really. It’s fine.”

For a moment, I thought I was off the hook and that I could just kick back and enjoy the pizza now, but I know that’s not right. _Okay. You can do this._ “No,” I said. “I should apologize. I’m sorry I got upset when… you know. You told me about Annabel.” I let out a breath and unclenched my fists. _Okay. Now say why_. “I just didn’t get why you wouldn’t tell me. But now I get it.”

Marty nodded as he put a slice on his plate and shut the box. “Okay.”

 _Now what? Trish didn’t tell me what to do now._ “So,” I said. “Yeah. That’s all I wanted to say.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” Marty said suddenly. “I just wanted this for myself. You know? No crazy things happening, no mysteries. Just… something normal.”

_But you always have normal._

“I get it,” I said. “I’ll stay away.”

“You don’t have to stay away,” Marty said. “Just… be cool, you know?”

“Cool,” I repeated. “All right. I’ll be cool.”


	50. Stacking Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marty tries to help Willow figure out the meaning behind the words stuck in her head

  * **Words:** 738
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“You’re getting crumbs all over my bed.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)
    * [“So… I might’ve been a little drunk.” “Only a little?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** September 2015
  * **Song:**[Rut - The Killers](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DpTIS3cxX8Xw&t=YzFlYTQ4NWIxYTJhNDhiM2EyOTg4ZTZmNmYyZGZhMjMxYzE4ZThkZSxmdW4wa0JpVQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F616980658704760832%2Fstacking-up&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _:)_



—————————————————————————–

**“You’re getting crumbs all over my bed.”**

We were hanging out in Marty’s room that night after his dad finally came home with a few guests for a late dinner.

“Sorry,” I said, brushing the pizza crust crumbs off his comforter and watching a Youtube compilation of nuclear explosions over his shoulder. “Dominos pizza wouldn’t crisp like this.”

Laughter broke out in the kitchen again and Marty sighed, pausing the video since neither of us can even hear what they were saying, even with subtitles. Marty’s dad always was distant with us, so it was strange hearing him as the life of the party. “I meant to ask,” Marty said suddenly. “What’s with the words on your arm? I saw them when you were changing the other day. Sorry.”

I slowly lifted my sleeve and stared at the single word I scrawled back again after my shower that evening. _Sumerkey._ “It’s nothing,” I said, remembering our conversation earlier in the night. “You don’t need to worry about it.”

“No, but I’m asking,” Marty said. “I want to know. This is okay.”

I sighed and tugged my sleeve back down. “It’s just a word. A word that I think used to mean something to me, but I’m not sure what. I used to write it on my arm a lot back at the Facility.”

“Why?”

I had my ideas but wasn’t sure if I was ready to share them, or if I wanted to continue down this path. I stared at the wall behind him instead. “It’s another memory that came back. I didn’t want to forget it again.”

“Could you check your… uh… note things? The ones that you guys took from Boston this summer?”

“I already did,” I said. “Nothing.”

“Can I look?”

I paused and scrunched my nose. “I don’t know. It’s… I just don’t know.”

“Okay,” Marty shrugged. “It’s okay if you don’t want to.”

“Oh, hold on I’ll get my laptop,” I said, changing my mind. We both ended up sitting on his bed as I scrolled through pages of PDFs and scans, random files, and folders. “This was all we have,” I explained. “Fanisimo downloaded everything he could, but they did a pretty good job of separating their data and only left one machine behind by accident that he could get in to. There’s a lot of holes, even though this looks like a lot of information. Most of it isn’t even on us, it’s about the people that worked there.”

“And you’ve searched for the word?”

“Yup,” I said. “Trust me, I’ve already gone down this rabbit hole.”

“And you’re sure you got everything you could from the old Facility?”

“Well… it kind of burned down, so…” I said. I wondered what had become of the Facility, now that we had exposed it.

“How the hell did it burn down?” Marty asked.

“ **So… we may have been a little drunk.”**

**“Only a little?”**

“We had a party,” I said. “It doesn’t matter anyways. This is all we have now. And there’s no information on this word or what if means.”

Marty taps his phone against him comforter as he thinks, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “Do you remember anyone ever speaking it?”

“Yes,” I said quietly. “That’s how I first knew I recognized it.”

“Did they say anything before or after those words?”

 _Don’t you think I’ve already thought about this?_ I thought. _Trust me, I’ve gone through all of these possibilities._ “Same thing, every time,” I said. “One of them would say…” I took a deep breath, saying the words aloud for the first time. “ _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster._ And then that word. _Sumerkey_.”

“What after it?”

“I don’t know,” I said, trying to not let my irritation show. The laughter in the kitchen died down and normal conversation resumed. “Can we just unpause the video now? I’d rather just watch that than go through this.”

“If you’re sure,” Marty said, jumping down off his bed and sitting back at his desk. His finger hovered over the play button as he turned back to me. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Of course. Why?”

Marty didn’t make eye contact with me. “I mean… you’d tell me if you weren’t okay, right?”

“I’m just going through a thing right now,” I said. “I’ll be fine. Normal, right?”

“You… you can—”

“Can we just start the video? Please?”


	51. We Are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow has a troubling encounter while with Marty at a local library

  * **Words:** 1629
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Please don’t tell me you filmed that.” “Of course I filmed it.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** October 2015
  * **Song:**[We Are Unloved - Unloved](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DIgu0GCpKVnc&t=M2E4NWUzMDJkMDdmYTQ5NGQwZDFjMjBiOTZjM2JjMjQ5M2QzNDc4OSx5cjRqV3dHTw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F617065472132890624%2Fwe-are&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _troubling is a bit of an understatement but_



—————————————————————————–

Marty and I had been going to the library some days after school, the one right before our subway station. It was a quiet place to work, with free Wi-Fi and tons of amenities for NYC students. Sometimes Peter, Ned, or Kate would join us, but today it was just us two, since Peter and Ned had band practice and Kate had stayed after school to take a math test she missed.

I was juggling between studying practice questions for Academic Decathlon (yes, Peter and Ned had convinced me to join), Spanish homework, notes for our robotics meeting after school tomorrow, and a problem set for my math class. I had a hard time focusing on just one thing, so all four assignments were spread out in front of me as I bounced from one to the other.

“Hey, do you have a red pen?” Marty asked and I dug through my backpack. “I need it for this peer editing thing.”

As I handed him the pen, I caught a glimpse of the man sitting behind him and for some reason, his face was oddly familiar. He didn’t seem to notice us and was working on a laptop with a stack of books next to him.

I opened my own laptop and found the folder of files Fanismo had given us. _Am I really going to do this right here?_ I took a slow look around the library—it was fairly quiet for a Tuesday afternoon, with many of the tables empty. Back on my computer, I returned to the list of ex-Facility workers that I had pinpointed to New York City, searching for photos and trying to compare looks. And then I found him. _Adrian Lester._

“Hey,” I asked Marty in a low voice, turning my screen brightness down. “Could you take a look at something?” He leaned over my screen and I showed him an ID photo from the Facility. “Behind you. Don’t look now.”

After a moment, Marty turned and looked, before glancing back at me, his eyes wide. “Does he—”

I shushed him. “No, I don’t think he knows who I am. Yes, I think this is a coincidence.”

“We should leave,” Marty said, sliding one of his books into his backpack. “C’mon. Willow…”

I had already turned back to my computer, dragging and dropping all the files I had on him into a new folder, one that I planned to leak and send in to the tip line as soon as it was finished. Once I sent it in, I estimated I had about fifteen minutes tops to talk with Adrian before agents showed up. I opened up a VPN connection on my laptop and got to work. I was almost sure I was protected by _some_ whistleblowing law, but honestly my reading comprehension wasn’t great, and I didn’t want to take any chances. _I should really be thinking this through more, but I don’t want to lose this guy now. This is fate right here._

“Willow,” Marty said again, grabbing my attention.

“What?”

“I said we should leave. Someone else can deal with him.”

“No, no, we can’t risk it. We are. We are that someone else,” I murmured. “Can you do me a favor?”

“What?”

“I need you to pull the fire alarm.”

“Are you kidding me?” Marty shot back, before lowering his voice again. “Willow, I don’t know what you’re planning but… I can’t just… the police will definitely come and what if I—we—get caught—”

“Please,” I begged. “I’m going to leak this dude’s info and then I’ll only have minutes to talk to him. I don’t want other people in here.” I took another look around the library. “There’s only one camera, facing the main desk. Avoid that and we’ll be good.”

“No, no,” Marty protested. “Do it if you want. You pull the alarm.”

“I can’t,” I said, even though at that moment, I realized I probably could. I saw the alarm in a stack near us. _Okay, it’s a push and then pull down. Could I do that… like… without touching it? If I go near it, I’ll be the only person over there. I’ll get caught before I even get to Adrian._

I shut my eyes and pictured the motion if I were to use my abilities. _Push in. Pull down._ The push was the easy part, I didn’t know about the pull. Most of the time when I used my abilities, it was more of a spray and pray situation. Besides odd tricks, I didn’t really know how to do more refined tasks.

_Push in. Pull down. One motion._

I took a deep breath and hit send on the tip, before glancing back at the alarm. _Don’t look at it. You’re just gonna have to guess._

“I need you to be my eyes,” I told Marty. “Ready?”

He sighed. “Nope.”

With my fingers barely hidden by my jacket, I shot out a stream of air towards the alarm.

“Higher,” coached Marty.

I tried again, and this time, kept the stream consistent as I moved it up. A few papers set atop my backpack fluttered and I hoped that no one heard them. Finally, something changed in the pressure.

“Got it,” Marty said. “Now down.”

With my other hand, I created a second stream of air and with the right angle, I felt the pressure change again. “Did it go down?” I asked.

“I think so,” said Marty, staring back down at his homework, trying to look casual. “I don’t know, I don’t hear—”

The alarms suddenly blared on and I instinctively covered my ears as Marty jumped out of his seat and the rest of the library patrons started scrambling. Lights were flashing already, and people were heading for the door, packing up their things, while the librarians went to assist an afterschool program on the other side of the library. “Okay, be my backup,” I told Marty. “I’m not using powers for this part, not here in the open. And film this for me. I need to rewatch it later.”

Before Adrian Lester could get up, I plunked myself down in the seat across from him, trying to avoid the sweat already pooling around my wings and under my shirt. I felt exposed out here, just facing him down as Willow, no powers, no mask, just me.

“Fire,” he said to me, seeming confused. “What are you—”

“Hi,” I said quickly. “Adrian?”

“No…”

“Adrian Lester. You worked at a Facility in Boston. HYDRA.” The look on his face answered my own question and I pressed forward, well aware that my time was already running out. “What do you know about Subject Zero?”

“Nothing,” he whispered.

“Doctor Dawn Turner?” I asked. “What about her? Know where she is?” He got up quickly and I stood too. The library was cleared out now. The alarm was still going off. I was about to claw something if I was exposed to it much longer. “Dawn Turner,” I said again. “Where is she? Where did she go?”

“Far away,” he said. “Like you should—"

“What was Monster?” I asked, feeling almost powerless in this conversation, here in public, with no chance at intimidation.

“Who are you? Who sent you?”

“Look, dude, the police are coming, neither of us have a lot of time. What was Monster?”

“Are you talking about that thing with the book?”

“Book? What book?”

“Willow!” Marty cried out as I paused to think, and when I refocused, Adrian had a gun pointed at me from under his jacket. “Run!”

It was almost instinctual as it happened and I thrust my hands out, as if I was pushing him away, and before he could pull the trigger, Adrian was launched into the air, thrown towards the circulation desk, where he crumpled to the ground. I exhaled as if the wind had been knocked out of me and through the alarms and Adrian’s groans, I heard Marty calling my name.

“Willow! Let’s move!”

I scooped up my things and we ran for the door, trying to collect ourselves as we pushed it open. It had only been a minute since the alarm had been pulled. I saw the gun laying on the ground next to him and heaved a breath as I realized what a close call that may have been. “Willow, I didn’t know you could—”

“—not now,” I told Marty. “Not now. I’m sorry about this. I’m sorry I—” _If you got caught there, they would have had everything on you._

I then remembered the video I asked him to take. “ **Please don’t tell me you filmed that.”**

**“Of course I filmed it.”**

“Delete it,” I said as we weaved our way through the crowd outside the library. “Now, delete it now!”

“But you said you wanted—”

“I know, I know,” I said. “But I used my powers and it needs to be deleted. Right now!”

While Marty scrambled to open his camera roll, we made it to the sidewalk and blended with the crowd. After a moment’s consideration, I grabbed Marty’s hand and tugged him to the subway station. “Let’s leave. Before anything else happens.”

“Willow—”

“I’m sorry I got you involved,” I said, as we ran down the stairs to the platform. “Again. I’m sorry I got you involved again.”

“Is that what you’ve been doing? What you go out at night?”

_Crap, crap, crap. I’ve done it again, I’ve pulled Marty into this and he should be nowhere near it. Once again, I’ve hijacked any sense of normalcy we have—_

“No,” I lied. “That was my first time. It won’t happen again.” _And let’s pray that no one comes knocking about this._


	52. The Looking Glass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow receives unexpected visitors following the library incident

  * ****Words:**** 1978
  * ****Characters:**** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Phil Coulson, Daisy Johnson, Melinda May
  * ****Prompt/Tag:****
    * [“We have to leave the country.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * ****Timeline:**** October 2015
  * ****Song:****[The Hall of Mirrors - Kraftwerk](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Da15yqZ1uL9A&t=NTE1NmM0ODg3YTU1MTRjNjY3Y2Y5NGI0MzA3NzAyN2EwYjUxZGRlOSxBcGpwT1NMVw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F617253339228405760%2Fthe-looking-glass&m=1)
  * ****A/N:**** _uh-oh sisters!_



—————————————————————————–

It seemed that my prayers weren’t answered. I spent the days after the library incident completely paranoid, feeling like this was becoming a pattern, some incident escalating, the fallout paranoia, and then the eventual slide back into normalcy until the next one.

 _I need to stop. I need to stop_.

That Thursday was the first day I was able to not obsess over what happened. Marty and I made a pact to not talk about it, and I made a promise to never let Marty get that close again. _That was a mistake. He saved me, but what if it went differently? No more help._

I got home from school early that day, only feeling a little better after learning that Adrian Lester had been arrested, and the fire alarm pull had been attributed to him as well, as an escape tactic. I tried not to let it get to my head, but I was shocked that I had gotten away with it, right out in the open, in broad daylight. _Stop this, stop this Willow. We’re going down a dangerous path._

I had texted the Lab Rats group chat, asking if they remembered anything about a book, but so far, no one had remembered anything. _Was it… like… a Bible? Some HYDRA Nazi book? Just a random bedtime story? Is that what Monster was? Just a bedtime story?_

I was so deep in thought that I didn’t even hear someone approached our door until they knocked. I froze in my room and opened my bedroom door, poking my head out. Both Marty and his dad were out—it was just me home.

“Oh, what the _fuck?_ ” I whispered. I considered just not answering it, maybe they would think no one was home. _Okay, we go out through the window, fly to the roof, regroup from there—_

_No. No powers. I have to face this as a normal person would. I didn’t do anything wrong. I have nothing to hide. It’s that simple. Besides, what if it’s just like UPS dropping off a package?_

They knocked again and I crept towards the apartment’s front door before peering through the peephole. There were three people outside—official looking. _Oh shit. HYDRA?_

_I should run, right now. Leave._

_But if it was HYDRA, they would have come for me while I was at school. They wouldn’t knock, right?_

I took another deep breath, checked to make sure my wings were hidden, and slowly opened the door, just enough to poke my head out. “Hello?” It was a man and two women. The man seemed to be the one in charge, which was one suckaroo for feminism.

“Hi, Willow?” the man asked. “Mind if we come in? We have a few questions about an incident you may have witnessed at the Henry Clay Public Library the other day.”

_Oh SHIT._

I pushed away my panic and tried to remain calm and keep my expression neutral. “What? What incident?”

“It would be easier if we could sit down,” said one of the women. She wasn’t smiling like the man was.

“Is anyone else home?” The other woman asked.

I opened the door a little more, my heart pounding as I considered my options. “No…? Maybe… maybe I should call our lawyer or something. Are you police?”

“No, not police,” said the man. “I’m Phil Coulson. We specialize in strange occurrences, like the ones you may have witnessed, as part of the Strategic Homeland, Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. And this is Agent May and Agent Johnson.”

I worked through the letters in my head. “Shield?” _OH SHIT._ “Wait… aren’t you guys… wait also hold on, who came up with the letters thingy was it really necessary, it’s kind of a lot…” I couldn’t stop talking, words were just pouring out of my mouth, my usual nervous rambles starting.

“Everything all right?” Agent May asked.

“Yeah, no, I’m fine. So… uh…” I cleared my throat. “What about the library? How did you even know…?”

“Oh,” said Phil, looking towards Agent Johnson for an explanation. “Agent Johnson, can you…”

“You posted on Instagram and tagged the library about ten minutes before it happened,” Agent Johnson said simply. She pulled out her phone and showed me a picture. “This one?”

 _Oh… fuck._ It was a selfie of me and Marty with the caption _come to Henry Clay Public Library if you want an ass kicking in the next 30 minutes._

Phil chuckled. “It’s amazing. Every year this part of our job gets easier. Between Facebook, Instagram, and Flickr—”

“Flickr?” I interrupted. “No one uses that anymore. I mean, Snapchat, for example, might be way more helpful if you used the—" I stopped, realized I was rambling again.

“Use the…?” Agent Johnson asked.

“There’s… uh…” I glanced out the window. “A vulnerability that uh…allows you to view Snaps under a specific um… geotag… never mind.” _Can you stop talking? Is that possible for you?_

“Well, as much as I would love to talk about what’s hip with the kids these days,” Phil said, “We just need to know if you saw anything out of sorts at the library yesterday. Anything strange, unusual?”

_Just play dumb._

“I mean… the fire alarm went off. Why would they call you guys in for that?” I plopped down on the couch, putting my shaking hands underneath my legs as the other agents sat down across from me. _Get it together!_ I forced myself to make eye contact with Phil since Agent May wouldn’t stop staring me down. “

“Willow, our team learned of the arrest of a person of interest that took place at the same time you evacuated the building.” Phil pulled out a photo of Adrian Lester and showed it to me. “However, a security camera by the front desk captured the agent being thrown back by an unknown force before his arrest and the injuries sustained are believe were inflicted by a powered individual. That’s why we were called in. Here.” He pulled up the security footage and I watched Adrian hit the desk again, flinching as he did so. _Did I really throw him that hard?_

“Damn, that’s crazy,” I said, not sure of what else to say, kicking myself for forgetting about the camera by the front desk. “I didn’t see anyone though if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Did you see anyone talking to him before the alarms went off?” Phil asked. “Or perhaps what he was doing?”

“I was just there studying,” I said evenly. “No, I didn’t see anything.”

“You didn’t seem him get approached by anyone, or anyone else suspicious in the building?” Agent May clarified.

“No,” I said again, this time a little more forcefully. “Look, I have a lot of homework, so…”

“Okay, all right,” said Phil gently. “We’re just going around and trying to figure out our next steps and questioning anyone who may have seen anything. Thank you for your time.”

I saw Agent Johnson glancing around the apartment, and it was making me nervous. None of this felt quite real and I was already thinking about what this meant for our Rat Revolution, for the others. _If SHIELD finds out about us, about what we’ve been doing, we’re going to be in some real hot shit._

_This was exactly what Jessica warned you about and you ignored her._

“Who else do you live here with again?” Agent Johnson asked, suddenly.

“Uh… don’t you guys know?” I asked. “I mean, government and all? NSA shit?”

The others looked to Phil as he answered. “Well, actually, you were a bit difficult to track down. Did you move recently? Your records were a bit…well… sparse, to be frank.”

_Oh, no. Answer this one carefully._

“Uh… actually yeah,” I said. “Um… there was a big fire.” _Why the fuck would you say that?_ “House burned down… and then uh… my parents died.” _Where did that come from?_ “You can look it up. The Gideon Barn fire.” _Willow—stop! Are you on crack or something?_ “Small farming community. Came to stay with these guys. Family friends.” I shifted my pose to the same one I did when I didn’t do my homework, elbows on the knees, leaned forward like I was going through something, so the teacher would feel bad.

“Sorry for your loss,” Agent May said.

“It’s fine.” _No, don’t say that!_ “Is that everything?” I asked.

“I think so,” said Phil, standing up, the tone in the room shifting again. “We’ll be in touch if we need anything else.”

“Cool,” I led them over to the door. “Well, yeah, stay in touch. Would love to talk again sometime. Sorry I couldn’t help.”

“Nice meeting you,” said Agent Johnson and I forced a smile.

As soon as I shut the door behind them, I huffed a deep breath in, leaning against the door for support, all the anxiety from the interview filling me at once. I felt lightheaded and sat down instead, my head against the wall. _This is bad. This is really bad._

I could still hear their voices as they waited for the elevator, and even though they talked in whispers, I could hear them.

_“Think she was hiding something?” Agent Johnson asked. “I mean, we can agree that was weird, right?”_

Ouch, thanks for that jab to my self-esteem.

_“Perhaps,” said Phil. “The question is, why?_

_“Do you think it was her?” Agent Johnson asked. “I mean if the ACTU finds this person before we do…”_

_“We’ll find them,” said Phil. “But for now, until we know what we’re dealing with, we’re not equipped to—”_

Their voices faded as the elevator descended and I was shaking again. _Why didn’t they ask to talk to Marty? Why come here? How much do they know? And why not just scoop me up now?_

I went to the window and stared out, half-expecting to see a bunch of black SUVs parked in the street. 

My first instinct was to talk to Fanisimo and some of the other Lab Rats and see if we could put together a hack, but if we made a wrong move, it would expose all of us, plus then I’d have to admit to them what I had been doing behind their backs—straying away from our original plan to just expose the old Facility workers, but confronting them, using my powers in the open. Drawing attention to myself.

The door opened and I jumped, stumbling back, only to see Marty slipping his shoes off.

“Hey,” he said. “How are you feeling?”

 ** **“We need to leave the country,”**** I said, and then paused and put a finger over my lips. _Bugs. They could have left bugs._

“What are you…” Marty started, and I turned on my phone light to check under the coffee table and furniture, anything the agents had made contact with. When I saw they were empty, I turned off my flashlight and motioned to Marty.

“Turn off your phone.”

“Why?”

“Just do it.”

When he powered it off, I told him about the agents. “They were here, Marty. In the apartment,” I whispered. “They know stuff, and I don’t know how much.”

“So, what does that mean? What now?”

“It means that I’m done. Everything has to be back to normal. I don’t know how many resources they have or what they know. From here on out, I promise, everything is going to have to be normal.”

_It means I’m shouldn’t take my phone with me anymore when I do these operations. It means I have to be twice as careful, no more sloppy work. It means I need to finish this before anyone else finds me._

And what do I mean by finish?

Find Subject Zero. Find Doctor Turner. Find out what Monster was. Destroy anything that’s left of it.


	53. Something Good

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang celebrates Halloween

  * **Words:** 1166
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Kate Gray, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Aunt May, Jessica Jones
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Come here, I want to show you something.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“We’ll make it work.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“That’s a good picture of you.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** October 2015
  * **Song:** Something Good Can Work - Two Door Cinema Club
  * **A/N:** _this song reminds me of hanging out with my friends last summer (cries in corona)_



—————————————————————————–

I was spending my Saturday afternoon at Jessica’s apartment, helping her sort through the evidence on her latest case as she argued with Hogarth on the phone. “Hey, Willow,” Jessica said, snapping to get my attention. “Hogarth wants you to meet her this week at her office. Something about your case?”

“Oh, right,” I said, sighing, as their conversation turned back to how Jessica had recently handled one of Hogarth’s other jobs. Hogarth was still keeping me around, mostly to help her with various tasks, but also because at the beginning, she thought I might be able to have a case against the Facility, once all was said and done. It was a longshot at this point, but I guess she was hoping for a big payout if it ever did come to fruition.

I opened my phone, distracting myself with Twitter for a few minutes before returning to work and fired out a few tweets against the people lobbying for superpowered regulation. _You can’t catch what you can’t find._

“ **Come here, I want to show you something** ,” Jess said suddenly, hanging up the call with Hogarth and motioning at her laptop. I got up off the couch and walked over to her desk, leaning over her shoulder to look at the image on her screen. It was a grainy photo of someone in an office building, taken from ground level.

“What is this?”

“Client thinks her husband has been cheating at the office. Easy stuff, except I can’t get any good intel. The only place I can get a good shot of his office is here,” said Jessica, opening up Google Maps and pointing at a building, “but I can’t seem to figure out where their roof access is, and I really don’t want to waste time looking.”

“You can’t…?” I started and mimicked jumping.

She snorted. “Yeah. Not that high. Monday, can you get up there?”

I squinted at the satellite images. “Yeah… probably. Depends. Don’t usually fly during the day. But I could go after it gets dark. Does he stay late?”

“You bet.”

I walked back over to the couch. “Okay. I can do that.” I packed up my laptop and backpack as the end of the day drew near and prepared to go over to Peter’s to the small Halloween party Aunt May was holding for us. “I’ll see you Tuesday,” I said. “I don’t have to be at rehearsal that day.”

“Heading out?” Jessica asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “Going to catch the train to Queens. Peter’s having a Halloween party.”

“Hold on,” said Jessica, sighing, grabbing her jacket from the back of her chair. “I’ll walk you to the station.” She gestured to her empty shelves. “I’m out of booze anyways.”

We took the elevator downstairs and stepped out onto the busy city streets, with people out in Halloween costumes and a few glowsticks illuminating the sidewalks. It was unusually cold and I shivered in my thin jacket, suddenly remembering that it had been almost a year since I escaped from the Facility. _One year. Wow._ I struggled to keep up with Jessica’s quick strides as we navigated around crowds of New Yorkers enjoying the evening.

“So, what, no costume?” Jessica asked me. “For your party.”

“Oh, I didn’t have time to come up with one,” I said. “Been busy with the musical. We open in a few weeks. Kinda a lame excuse, I know.”

It was quiet for a few moments until Jess shrugged. “Nah. I mean… you know… it’s cool that you’ve involved and shit. I wasn’t.”

It took me a second to register the comment. “Was that… that might be the nicest thing you’ve said to me,” I joked.

“Yeah, don’t get used to it.”

She dropped me off at the subway station and I rode the train to Peter’s, surrounded by costumes in the car, and laughed as I thought to myself, for a moment, that as myself, with my wings out and everything, nobody would bat an eye tonight. A group of college students laughed in the aisle, taking pictures together as a girl complained that her costume partner did not show up to the pregame. **_“We’ll make it work_** _,”_ her friend said. “ _It’s fine_. _Girl, you’re fine_.” ****

I smiled as I overheard their conversation, and the train doors opened onto my stop. I jostled through the crowd, sending a text and selfie to our group chat that I was on my way, almost ignoring the rare _sorry_ as someone bumped into me getting off.

“All good,” I said over my shoulder, sliding my phone into my pocket and stepping onto the platform. Almost one year in New York City, and it was really starting to feel like home. For the first time in my life, I was really, truly happy where I was, and as I walked down to Peter’s apartment, I experienced one of those rare moments where everything felt right with the world like I was right where I was supposed to be.

At Peter’s, we gorged on candy and watched Halloween as Aunt May tried to make those slice and bake sugar cookies with the pumpkins on them. “I can’t tell when they’re done,” she said, peering into the oven. “How do you know?”

Peter got up off the couch and studied them. “Are the edges like browning yet?”

“No,” said May, and then she gasped, and I jumped. “Wait, before I forget, let me get a picture of all you guys on Halloween!”

“Aw, May,” Peter said, his face reddening, “you don’t have to always—”

“I’m ready!” said Ned, adjusting his position on the floor and giving two thumbs up with a smile. Peter smiled and sat down between me and Ned, putting one arm around me and holding a peace sign up with the other, same goofy open-mouthed smile as always. I froze at the contact, hoping that he couldn’t feel the wings under my hoodie, no matter how tight they pressed against my spine.

“Everyone get in there!” May said, holding the phone far away from her face as she prepared to take the photo. “One two three!” It was the five of us, me, Marty, Kate, Peter, and Ned, and the photo was immediately sent to the group chat as we turned back to the movie.

“Did you see it?” Kate asked me.

“I don’t like photos of myself,” I confessed.

“Oh, come on,” said Kate. “ **That’s a good photo of you!** You don’t have to be so camera-shy.”

“I gotta head out,” Marty said, checking the time. “Supposed to go to a party with Annabel tonight, too.”

“See ya!” Ned said, and May packed him some cookies to go.

I sighed contently as Peter passed the plate of cookies around and enjoyed the company of my friends. Maybe there weren’t a lot of things I was doing right, but I was doing some things right. I was here, after all. I was still living my life.


	54. Someone Like Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter asks Willow to come to hang 

  * **Words:** 893
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“I know it’s the middle of the night, but can you come over, please?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“You owe me.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** November 2015
  * **Song:**[Young Folks - Sleeping At Last](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D4Saa_HCzMbw&t=NDY5NWVhOTlmZjkzOGUwYmQ2NmEwMDc4NWViODFmYzIzNjY2ODUxMixVN29zcW91Rw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F617750689229225984%2Fsomeone-like-me&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _tfw when you have a deep and personal conversation with someone and then resolve to never bring it up again because anxiety_



—————————————————————————–

I was sitting up on the roof across the street for the office that Jessica had wanted me to stake out. I had spent the evening with my binoculars watching his office window, and sure enough, the target had a special visitor that evening. I had gotten the pictures hours ago, but I was still sitting on the roof, admiring the view. It was the tallest building in the area, but still fairly old. There was a water tower on the roof, and I decided that if I ever needed a place to hide out, this would be it. When I was sure the dark covered me, I let my wings stretch out and sighed with contentment, even as the air chilled my back.

My phone buzzed and I glanced down, frowning. It was late, really late.

There was a text from Peter. **_“I know it’s the middle of the night, but could you come over, please?_** _Or FaceTime? FaceTime would work._ ”

I unlocked my phone and texted him back. “ _Yeah, wazzup?_ ”

“ _Sad boy hours_. _Can’t sleep._ ”

I checked the time. It was one in the morning, and even though we didn’t have school the next day because of Election Day, I was still exhausted at the thought of staying up later. Still, I texted him that I was on my way and gathered up my things, deciding to fly over to Queens and enjoy a night flight before it got too cold to fly around at night anymore. _I should really ask Fanisimo about that suit again._

I was there in minutes, and I think I surprised him when I texted him “ _here”_ from the sidewalk. Peter let me in, and we sat in the stairwell, so as not to wake his aunt with our talking. “That was fast,” he said. “How did you…?”

“I was already on the subway,” I said. “Was hanging out. You good?”

“Yeah,” Peter said. “Just having a weird few days. I was going to text Ned, but he’s never up now and you’re always texting the group chat in the middle of the night, so…”

I laughed. “Yeah, I got you, dude. What happened? Why are things weird?”

He sat down on the stairs next to me and cupped his face in his hands. “I don’t know. I’ve been feeling really anxious this week for some reason. Went dumpster diving last weekend and got bit by something and it’s still not healed so like I’m freaking out about that. Plus, it’s the holiday season coming up and that’s always weird without my uncle, so. I don’t know. Lots of things.” He pulled his sweatshirt sleeve up and showed me his hand, which had a greenish-yellow bump that seemed to discolor the veins around it. “Oof.”

“Are you serious?” I asked. “You should really that checked.”

“No,” Peter said quickly, pulling the sleeve back down. “It doesn’t really hurt anymore, anyways. Do things… just… feel weird recently? To you?”

I laughed. “Things always feels weird to me, dude,” I said, and it was the truth.

“What’s weird for you?”

I paused for a moment, thinking my words out carefully, but wishing I could open up to my friend. “I don’t know. I just… sometimes I just feel different. There are things about me… that are different.” I sighed and decided to take the leap, as far as I was willing to go. “I… I can do things. Things that other people can’t. Sometimes it scares me and sometimes I’m afraid of what it means if it gets out. But sometimes it absolutely rocks.” _I hope you know what I’m saying here._

Peter’s head jerked up to make eye contact with me. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

 _Does Peter…?_ “Me too,” he said, quietly. “Things I can’t explain. I don’t know what it means.” I tried not to express any shock or ask more questions or do anything besides nod. _We see each other now._ Neither of us talked for a moment, neither of us wanting to vocalize what any of this meant or what _we_ meant by our vague statements. “I just don’t know what to do,” he said.

I sighed, thinking hard. “Whatever it is,” I murmured, “you just have to make the best of it. Do something with it. Make something good out of it.” I hated that I was echoing what the scientists at the Facility had once told me, but it was true. I didn’t quite know what was going on with Peter, but I wanted to help. We made eye contact again and, at that moment, I knew that we weren’t going to have this conversation again. This started and ended here. We had become each other’s secret keepers, and even if neither of us knew exactly what the other meant, there was understanding. _This doesn’t leave the stairwell. We won’t talk about this again._ There would be no asking _what_ or _how_ or _since when_ , there was just this new alliance between us now.

“Thanks for coming tonight,” Peter said. “Means a lot.”

“ **You owe me** ,” I said, smiling. “Was having an epic night sitting on the roof.”

“Which one?”

I pulled out my phone and showed him a picture I had taken. “Here. It’s hard to get up but if you can, the view is awesome.”

_I see you, now._

_Whatever this means._


	55. Too Good To Lose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and her friends goof around after play rehearsal

  * **Words:** 713
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Kate Gray, Marty Fields, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Oh no, you are not dragging me into this.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“It’s about time.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** November 2015
  * **Song:**[Seventeen - Heathers](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPusvNmzyrSA&t=NGQyNjg0MDMxNmQ3ZjlkNjZlYmZlYmEzOTUyZTMzYjY3NjBiMDk4ZSx3ZE9SRnR2bw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F617887463343554560%2Ftoo-good-to-lose&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _is willow a theater kid? well….?_



—————————————————————————–

“Come on, guys,” I said to Peter and Ned. “Kate’s been waiting!” We were walking the halls after a decathlon meeting, debating answers, and rolling our eyes at one of our teammates, Flash. “Marty and Annabel are going to be there, too. She says she has news for us.”

“Oh, this is going to be good,” said Ned. “I hope she found bigfoot by now.”

I laughed. “Probably not.”

“Who would have thought we discovered aliens before bigfoot?” Peter asked.

“Okay, can someone explain the aliens thing to me,” I asked, “because I’m still not a hundred percent sure—”

Ned pushed the auditorium doors open and Kate yelled us down from the stage. “ **It’s about time!** ”

“Sorry,” I said. “We ran late! How was rehearsal?”

“Long,” said Kate. “Way too long. Kind of wish I did tech like you.”

“Until hell week,” I said. “Then it’s going to be… well… hell.”

“Okay,” said Kate. “Here’s the deal. Peter, Ned, you too.” The auditorium doors opened again, and Marty came jogging down the aisle to the stage.

“I’m here!” he said.

“Look how the tables have turned,” I said.

“I’m not late,” Marty said. “Kate just texted me.”

“Okay,” said Kate. “So, we have a few more weeks before the fall musical and we’re wondering if you guys would be interested in helping us fill out our chorus on one or two songs. We need more male voices, but also voices in total.”

“ **Oh, no, you’re not dragging me into this** ,” Marty said. “No. I don’t sing.”

I shifted my stance uncomfortably, thinking about being on the stage in front of an audience of people. “Yeah, I don’t know Kate. We’d need costumes…”

“You can wear normal clothes,” said Kate. “Just something nice.”

“I’m in,” said Ned, and our heads all turned. “I don’t know. Could be fun.”

Peter stood with his arms crossed as he thought, and we made brief eye contact. I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about our conversation only nights before, but it seemed like it was something we were going to bury.

“I’ll do it,” I said, not even believing my own voice. “Sure. C’mon, Peter. Marty.”

“Fine,” Peter sighed, but he began to smile. “Do we get our names in the little books? It’s just for like one or two songs?”

“Yup,” said Kate. “Marty?”

The peer pressure was on, and Marty finally related. “Fine, okay fine.”

“Yes!” said Kate. She was elated and began filling the boys in while I sat on the edge of the stage, my legs dangling off. My right hand absently moved to trace the letters hidden underneath my upper left arm. _Sumerkey_. I thought back to the Facility, the things they used to teach us about attachment or friendship. _The world will never understand your abilities. But what you are doing is a gift to humankind. Everywhere you go, chaos will follow._

_But it didn’t. I’m still here._

I was shaken from my thoughts as Kate turned on the auditorium sound system and the boys started goofing around, dancing to the number that was playing and half-remembering lyrics. I watched as she sprinted back up to the stage and climbed up, gesturing for me to follow. I leaped up after her and as Kate used a remote to switch between songs, Marty and I reenacted the number we had seen the cast work on when sitting in on a rehearsal the week before.

Peter and Ned broke into a fit of laughter as Marty and I hit the chorus, belting the lyrics at each other, and Kate cranked the volume.

“Yes—hit those harmonies!” Kate yelled, and Marty and I faltered out into embarrassed giggles before continuing. I felt euphoric in that moment, running around the stage with my friends in an exaggerated performance and almost didn’t a quiet creak in the tech booth. My gaze lifted up to the booth in the dark back of the auditorium and I saw a figure standing up there, but I couldn’t make out who it was, or how long they had been up there. 

_It’s probably a teacher. Someone checking in on all the noise._

I turned back to my friends, determined to let myself remember and forget on my own terms.


	56. Familiar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow hacks the fourth ex-Facility scientist but doesn’t confront them

  * **Words:** 1041
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Ethan Kim, Gooblin, Pip, Pingu, Burr, Spark, Danny, Manny, Dew, Fanisimo, France, Sabbath
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“You’ve got to be more careful.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“You can’t keep ignoring this.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** November 2015
  * **Song:**[4am - Bastille](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DFt1ylc8eBX0&t=ZjlhZWFhOTRjOTYwYmRjOTc5YmM4NzVmYzgzZGM1NDFmNGUyZTI5OCw0dnhSMG5ZMA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618059663366291456%2Ffamiliar&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _i love them all they’re so stupid_



—————————————————————————–

I sat in my room, video chatting with the other Lab Rats as we briefed each other on the last few weeks. I found myself leaving out parts, like the fact that instead of just going through the files we had and leaking one scientist’s information at a time, I was confronting them in person. _Which is why I won’t be doing that anymore. That incident at the library was way too close._

Still, confronting them had yielded some interesting results, such as the one-worded memory I had regained, and the theory that a book had been involved with our project. Pingu and I had told them about Subject Zero, but none of us remembered her and there were no leads on her besides the few random references in the files Fanisimo had uncovered.

“Okay, guys, I need us to all put our one braincell to work on this one,” I said. “Think _really_ hard. Does anyone remember a book? Or—” I rolled up my sleeve “—this word?” **_We can’t keep ignoring this_**.

“For the thousandth time, no,” said Manny. “Look, they’d take us into the Blue Lab or whatever and that’s it. I remember nothing from there.”

“There’s twelve of us,” I said. “I mean, out of all of us we should be able to piece something together, right?”

“There was a test…a… what’s the word…” Sabbath said suddenly. “A… process? They had a name for it. I heard it once and I remember thinking _that’s what’s wrong with us, that’s why I don’t remember_. It was around the time we escaped, so there was no reset to wipe those memories.”

“So, what’s the name of the process?” Burr asked.

“Well, I don’t remember,” said Sabbath. “That’s the point. I just remembering _knowing_.”

“Anything?” I asked. “A letter, the way it sounds…?”

“It began with F,” said Sabbath. “Like _flower_ or _frost…”_

“Poll the audience?” I asked the others, checking the time. “I have to go in a few minutes.” Ethan would be over soon.

“Fuck? That’s an F word,” France says. “Or… hey… me. _France_.”

“Think about this logically,” said Fanisimo. “HYDRA’s naming of things was like a whole department. It would have to have meaning. Think things that might relate. German names, or…”

“Beethoven,” said Pingu. “That’s German.”

“That doesn’t begin with F,” said Gooblin.

“He’s Austrian, isn’t he?” Pip asked.

“God, we’re braindead,” Dew said. “Uh… frost- _y_? That’s the thing they have a Wendy’s. And like maybe it has something to do with the cold?”

“I had Wendy’s for the first time last week,” Spark interjected. “That shit’s good.”

“These words seem too easy,” said Danny. “Too… what’s the word… not formal enough. You know?”

“Colloquial,” Burr supplied.

“I’d know it when I hear it,” said Sabbath. The conversation drifted to a 4am call that some of the boys were trying to get together, and Burr berating Danny and Manny for exposing their powers in Vegas as part of a magic set. Special effects could explain the display, but some of the Lab Rats were still on edge about it.

“ **You’ve got to be more careful** ,” she said. “Stop posting those videos on Youtube.”

“Dew posted on Youtube,” tattled Manny.

I heard our apartment buzzer ring and when I checked my phone, I saw Ethan had texted me.

_Ethan: Here!_

I hurried to clean up my mess of a desk and leaned back into the camera view for a moment. “Got to go,” I said. “Let’s talk soon. Keep spitballing words. If we got the name of whatever they did to us, well, it’s a start. Also _books_. Get on that.” I heard one of the other Lab Rats say something along the lines of _ew homework_ as I disconnected. I was slightly jealous of a few of them because it seemed that they had moved on from the Facility faster than I had, especially considering they left after me. Pingu seemed to be doing well with her family in D.C., Gooblin had started some writing project, a group of the boys were still doing tricks in Vegas, Dew had just launched the music video we had helped him film, and on and on and on. It seemed like I was one of the only ones really fixated on getting back the memories we lost and figuring out what really happened. I needed that to move on.

The others were content to just forget, and I really couldn’t blame them.

After checking myself in the bathroom mirror, I nearly tripped over my backpack in the entryway as ran over to buzz Ethan in and let him up. I surveyed the apartment while I waited, making sure everything looked normal. _Of course it would look normal. Why wouldn’t it?_

In the final minutes before Ethan got upstairs, I double-checked the leak on the fourth Facility scientist I had planned and activated a VPN just before I hit _send_. Seconds later, Ethan was knocking on our apartment door and I slammed my laptop shut as I let him in. “Hey, dude.”

“Hi,” he said, waving in the awkward way he always did, which I had become accustomed to in the last few months. “Ready to make some babies?” He gave a nervous laugh. “Sorry… that was stupid I meant like do the baby project with the Punnett squares and stuff. Don’t know why I thought that would be funny…”

I laughed, despite myself. “You’re good. Let’s go sit.”

As Ethan and I worked through our biology homework and I tried to figure out how _bat wings_ would play into our fake child’s genes (not that I would tell Ethan), I spent the other work time discreetly monitoring the file leak and the aftermath. The Lab Rat group chat finalized plans for a _virtual sleepover_ and discussion session the following night. Even though we annoyed each other tremendously, I was still excited about the call.

I still had other things on my mind, though. I wanted to confront this scientist, Taddeo Moser, and ask him my questions but I knew it was too risky. _This can work just as well._

But this fourth leak wasn’t nearly as satisfying. I found myself wanting a piece of the action. _I need to look them in the eye._


	57. Slipping Into Midnight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Peter hang out after Willow gets hurt confronting a fifth ex-Facility scientist

**Words:** 888

 **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker

 **Prompt/Tag:** “Did you do this to yourself?” [x](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners)

[**Song:** Harsh Light – Nate Ruess](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DeMRRdk8xHr4&t=M2YyZmFlYzcwZGQ4Njg5NDAxZmQzZGIyYzJmYTRhMmI0Yjk0YzMzMSxTSzFhWVNOcQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F189164514002%2Fslipping-into-midnight&m=1)

**A/N:** _this was originally one of the first stories I wrote (I used to write these out of order) which is why the style/continuity doesn't quite match up. But that's okay._

—————————————————————————–

“Shit.”

I stood in the bathroom of Marty’s apartment, blood dripping from an open gash in my stomach. I didn’t expect someone named _Leo Scott_ to pull a knife on me, and I hadn’t seen the knife until it was too late. _That came out of nowhere._ It wasn’t a deep cut, mostly just a gash, but it hurt like hell.

“ _Shit_.”

_See, this is why you shouldn’t be doing this vigilante shit. Especially with just a hoodie for protection._

I sucked in a breath and searched through the medicine cabinet for rubbing alcohol. I can heal _fast_ , but I still had to make sure things healed _right_. A bone set wrong or a cut not properly cleaned could still spell disaster.

My phone buzzed and there’s a text from Peter. _Oh, double shit. Right now?_ Marty was at Annabel’s and I forgot that I invited Peter and Ned over for later that night.

_> Peter: Still on for tonight? I might be late but I can come._

With one hand still over my stomach, I use my free hand to text him back.

_> Willow: Yeah sure. If possible, can you bring some gauze or something?_

_> Peter: What?_

I had no idea how to dress a wound and was guessing based on what I’ve seen on television. I know I need something to stop the bleeding, something to sterilize it, and something to protect it.

_> Willow: I got a cut a need like something to wrap it up lol_

_> Peter: Like medical dressing?_

_> Willow: yeah sure I’ll pay you back_

I read back through our conversation and try to plan how much I was going to tell Peter. _This was a terrible idea. I shouldn’t have started this stuff again. That fourth leak went perfectly fine from the safety of your apartment. Why did you feel the need to do this? You didn’t even get anything out of it._

I pull my hand off the wound and quickly open up the half-full bottle of rubbing alcohol that I found. I pretty sure Marty bought it to clean out his bowl, but ever since his dad confiscated the smokerette, I don’t think he’ll need the bottle for a while.

Carefully, I pour a trickle onto the wound. “Fuck! Fuck! _Shit!_ Fuck! Ow!”

I reach over to the toilet paper and pull off a long piece, wrapping it around my hand and dabbing around the wound. I’m sweating bullets and I feel the heat radiating off my body. The cut was thin and not that deep, but it still hurt like hell.

Once that was done, I ripped open a pad and held the cloth side over the wound. _Okay, Peter, hurry up. I just want to get this thing ready to heal._

There’s a knock on the apartment door and I get up, slightly dizzy, and open it. Peter’s there, holding one of those _Have a Nice Day_ bags from the local bodega.

“Woah, Willow, what happened?! **Did you do this to yourself?** Did someone else?” He fumbles around in the bag and pulls out gauze and dressing. “Uh, you need to clean that and—”

“Already did that,” I say. “I just need to wrap it and let it be now.”

“You need to go to a hospital,” says Peter. “You’ll need stitches.”

“I’m fine,” I say. “Trust me. I heal fast.” 

“Are you sure? What happened?” he asks again.

“Was trying to… uh… cut open a package on my way back up to the apartment and the cutter slipped. Stabbed myself.”

“Dang,” says Peter. He then seems to remember the bag in his hand. “Oh wait, take this!” I’m not sure if he believes me or not and the confusion on his face seems to indicate that he’s suspicious.

“Yup, thanks.”

As I take the pad off the wound and I start wrapping it up with the gauze and dressing, Peter notices my black eye. “How did _that_ happen?”

“What?” I ask, preoccupied with not dying.

“Your eye. Did someone punch you?”

 _God, I didn’t even remember that part_. I open up my phone’s camera and study it. “Oh shit. No way.”

“What happened?” Peter. “Because, obviously, like, something else happened.”

“After the cutter slipped I… fell down some stairs.”

Peter makes a face.

“No, seriously,” I say. “It was embarrassing. I wanted to leave out that part.”

“Okay, well,” says Peter, slowly, like he still doesn’t believe me, “you should put something cold over that to stop the swelling.” He walks over to the fridge and pulls out a bag of frozen peppers and onions. After wrapping it in a few paper towels, he hands it to me.

By now, I’ve finished wrapping the stab wound and I pull my shirt back down. “Thanks, homie.” I put the bag over my eye and shudder as the cold makes contact with my face.

“By the way, Ned can’t come anymore,” says Peter. “He’s really behind on the Spanish paper.”

I nod. “Dope. Okay. Wanna hatewatch Glee then? Ned hates it _too much_ to watch it with me.”

Peter looks back at my stomach. “Are you _sure_ that’s going to be okay? You should really get it looked at.”

“Dude trust me. I’ll be okay.”

Peter still looks confused, but he nods and crashes down on the couch. “All right. Glee time.”

As I turn on the television, I turn back to look at him. “Hey, thanks for not making this weird. Don’t tell anyone I fell down the stairs.”

He shrugs. “Eh. I’ve been there.”


	58. Tonight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MSST’s Theater Department has its opening night of Heathers

  * **Words:** 1078
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Kate Gray, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Annabel Carson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Fine, don’t say anything and make me worry.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)
    * [47\. “I can think of a million places I’d rather be right now.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** November 2015
  * **Song:**[Seventeen (Reprise) - Heathers](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D7Ko6Nn0_8II&t=YWNhNjBlNDg3ZDY0OGQxNGNhNTVhNGFlMGY2MzJkM2JlMTU4NzA2ZixFNWZtSUJzNg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618146972548857856%2Ftonight&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _leave a comment down below if you wanna make predictions where this is going idk_



—————————————————————————–

Opening night of _Heathers_ at MSST came faster than I ever expected and suddenly we were only an hour from showtime, and I was sweating bullets under my tunic sweater. I knew it would be even hotter under the stage lights, after Kate had talked us into being a part of the ensemble, but I couldn’t take it off.

On top of it, my wound from the fight earlier in the week still hurt, even though it had already mostly healed. I had hoped it wouldn’t leave a scar, but it seemed that the puffy pink stripe across my stomach was there to stay. _Guess I’ll add that to the bucket list. Been shot? Check. Knifed? Check._

“How are you feeling?” Peter asked, seeing me backstage as I headed to the sound booth, my backpack slung over my shoulder, filled with all my notes and cues. He was looking down at my stomach and I crossed my arms over it.

“Fine,” I said. “It’s basically good as new. You?”

Peter glanced out of the side of the curtain at the audience gathering. “Wow. That’s a lot of people.”

“Hey, just one song,” I said. “Doing it for Kate.”

“Right. Do it for Kate.” He sighed.

“Are you sure you’re good?”

“Yeah,” said Peter, shrugging the question off. “Just a lot on my plate right now. Stressed, you know?”

“How’s your uh…”

“Better.”

“Right. Okay.”

We went our separate ways as the stage manager did a time check and I went to settle into the booth, trying not to psych myself out about being on stage. _It’s fine. You’re fine. That SHIELD thing was weeks ago at this point and they never followed up. So, you’re in the clear on that. Plus, any other incident like the bank, or any of the scientists you busted would have been tracked back to you at this point if they were able to. Just relax. Enjoy the holiday season. One year free from the Facility._

After the incident with Leo Scotts, I made a vow to not take on any more Facility scientists until after Christmas, giving me a month and a half to just relax and get the rest of my life under control. And I know I said I would stop last time, but this time I really meant it.

“God,” I whispered to myself as I sat down in the sound booth, before the other techie arrived. “Let’s just calm down. Hey, and worst-case scenario, if things get bad, boom, powers. Razzle and dazzle them, babey. Let’s see a big green man stop a Willow loaded up on Dunkin’.”

The show started and I watched from the sound booth, carefully adjusting the sound, and keeping an eye on the levels. I scanned the audience to see if there was anyone I knew, but it was too dark to tell. My mind drifted as I started imagining what I could do if—like—some enemy showed up to the performance and I had to fight them right here. _God that would be cool. I could go all… what’s that movie Marty’s dad was watching? Rambo._

_Also, it would ruin your life._

As the end of the show approached, I left the final cues to the other techie in the booth and cut through the school hallways to backstage, where Marty, Kate, Ned, and Peter were already waiting.

“Oh, God,” Marty whispered. “Annabel is out there and she’s definitely going to film this.”

“Hey, look,” Ned said. “I don’t know if I can do this anymore—”

“One song,” Kate pleaded. “It’s the last song. It’s fun. You guys did fine in rehearsal.” I exchanged a look with the others, taking a deep breath. I couldn’t remember the last time I was this nervous, not even in all my other activities this past fall. **_I can think of a million places I’d rather be right now._** My hands were shaking, and I clenched them at my sides as the curtain moved slightly. _Was that me?_

“Okay, guys, we’re on,” someone else backstage said.

I walked out between Marty and Kate, the stage lights blazing down on us and the audience just a dark mass beyond the stage. The music started playing and it was _so loud_ , but I wanted to enjoy this moment, really enjoy it, because it was something I could never have imagined doing a year ago. The _if no one loves me now, someday somebody will_ hit different this time, and I shut my eyes for just a second and embraced the moment, like I was saving a screenshot in my head. When I opened my eyes, I glanced at Marty and he was grinning as the music picked up and the others started dancing.

By the end, I was jumping around with the others and when the show ended and the lights when up in the house, I embraced my friends, still laughing as the applause started. I scanned the audience and saw Annabel, as well as Ethan sitting way in the back. _Oh God, there’s Aunt May and she’s filming this._

_One show down. We did it. We made it. You’re still alive._

My gaze wandered to the very back of the auditorium, and my eyes locked on a face that felt familiar as they said something to the people sitting with them. _Who is that?_

In the chaos as we exited the stage and went out to greet friends and family, I searched the faces of the crowd again, for a moment losing myself in the same paranoia I always found myself lost in. “Hey,” said Marty, catching up to me. “Almost lost you there!” He read the expression on my face almost immediately. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I said quickly.

“ **Fine, don’t say anything and make me worry**.” He said it half as a joke, but I knew he was serious.

I took a breath and tried to calm myself. “Nothing, really. I just thought I saw a classmate. We good.”

Annabel ran over and embraced Marty in a hug, taking him by surprise. “Nice job!” she said. “You, too, Willow.”

“Thanks, Annabel,” I said, still searching the crowd. _God, I must really be seeing things at this point. That SHIELD stuff was weeks ago. No one’s surveilling your fucking high school play, Willow._

“Hey!” Kate yelled over to us. “We’re going to Denny’s! Coming?”

_And all roads lead to Denny’s. This normal shit rocks._


	59. It's Fine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Marty hang out after Willow is woken up by a nightmare

  * **Words:** 771
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Stop hogging the blankets!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“You had another nightmare, didn’t you?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** November 2015
  * **Song:**[If The World Was Ending - JP Saxe (ft. Julia Michaels)](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dg9i_WQuAvMU&t=NTJjN2EzYzcyNTVkYTZhMDVlMWU1YmNiNDBjODIzYWY0ZjU1NjllOCxHUEZNNWtRcA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618239257462685696%2Fits-fine&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _i can’t do this i’m not strong enough_



—————————————————————————–

“Jesus, Willow!” said Marty jumping, his face lit by his laptop as he sat in bed. “God, don’t scare me like that.” I stood in the doorway of his bedroom around two in the morning, shivering in the chilly apartment. “ **You had another nightmare, didn’t you?** ” Marty asked, and I nodded, stepping further into his room, and shutting the door.

“Sorry to bother you. I—”

Marty gestured around his room. “I mean, I’m already awake, so.”

I sat down on the floor, my back against the door. “Yeah, it was a nightmare. Sorry.”

Marty lowered his laptop screen a little and pushed the computer back. “What was it about? If that’s okay.”

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes as I recalled the dream and leaned my head back against the door. “I had a dream that like… the government or something had a scanner and they could tell if you had abilities simply by looking at you. Sounds stupid now that I’m saying it…”

“No, no, that’s not stupid,” said Marty. “I mean, it’s not real, if that makes you feel better. Scientifically, I mean. They can’t do that.”

“I know,” I sigh. “What are you doing up?” I stand up to take a look at his laptop screen, but he changes the window as soon as I step closer.

“Uh… just talking to some guys,” Marty said. “The old scammaroo. Blackmailing creeps. You know.”

I crinkled my nose. “When was the last time you did that? Was like ages ago.”

Marty shrugged. “Low on cash and don’t want to ask my dad. Black Friday destroyed my bank account.” He watched me standing next to his bed for a second. “Wanna sleep over? Would that help?” He grinned. “Just don’t kick me. You’re like the most restless sleeper I know.”

I smiled a little and considered his offer for a minute, finally nodding. “Yeah.” Marty scooched over and handed me a pillow as I crawl under the comforter on the other side of his queen-sized bed, accidentally hitting him with my foot as I get situated.

“Willow! Your feet are _freezing,_ ” Marty said.

“Sorry,” I said again, for what felt like the hundredth time. I hated feeling like this, like a burden or annoying; it had taken me fifteen minutes of sitting on the edge of the guest bed, warding off the panic, clutching that stupid stuffed elephant before I had even been able to bring myself to get up and reach out.

“All good,” Marty said. “I’m still awake.” He laughed as I pulled the comforter over me. “ **Stop hogging the blankets!** ”

“That’s like six inches of blanket!” I said. “Six inches!”

“Too much blanket,” Marty said, opening up his laptop again. “I need to evict you.”

“Still blackmailing?” I ask sleepily as I lay back on the pillow.

“Nah, doing some reading for class, now,” he said. “Hey, wanna hear a weird fact?”

“What?”

“You know the musical Cats?”

“No?”

“It’s all about Cats? Like the whole musical is introducing different cats and their jobs. Also, they have sex.”

“What about it?”

“If you don’t know the musical then it’s not as interesting.”

“Tell me anyway. Like a really fucked up bedtime story.” I shut my eyes, trying to fall back asleep and pulling the comforter tightly around my body.

“Well, if you look at the chain of events from the making of that musical Cats, you can trace it back to a German necromancer from the 1400s.”

“What the fuck, Marty.” _I swear this kid finds the weirdest of the internet._

“It’s true. Look up Doctor Faustus when you get a chance; it’s a wild read.”

“You know I don’t read.”

Marty laughed as my eyelids began to grow heavy and I finally found myself starting to fall back asleep. “It’s such a weird musical but I love Cats,” he said. “I don’t even know why. I’m just waiting for them to make a movie of it.”

“Why?”

“Trust me, it would either be really good or really bad and I’d want to see it either way.”

“I’ll go with you when that happens,” I murmur. I fall asleep, finally, to the sound of him typing, the soft glow of his laptop illuminating the room. The week ahead of us was busy, with tons of tests, the winter dance Friday night, and Marty’s team in the playoffs on the same day, most likely the last game of the season. _We never make it this far_ , he had told me. The week ahead was packed, but right now it was quiet, calm. I could sleep at last.


	60. One More Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow deals with third-wheeling with Marty and Annabel before the dance

  * **Words:** 1058
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Annabel Carson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [10\. “Please don’t make me socialize.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
    * [28\. “I didn’t lose it, I just misplaced it.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Hammer to Fall - Queen](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DJU5LMG3WFBw&t=OTVlNWQ5MTdlMmQyOWVjNmQxZWMyNGJlZWM4NWZlNDk5NjBlNDg4YyxObGxRRk03NA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618248656038002688%2Fone-more-time&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _adfaadsklf this is bringing back way too many memories for comfort_



—————————————————————————–

I sat with Annabel on the bleachers as we watched Marty’s playoff game before the winter dance that night, both of us freezing our butts off as we shivered on the metal seats. I took another look at the clock; there were ten minutes left in the game. _Okay. I can do that._ I clapped my gloved hands together. “Let’s go Marty!” They were down by three, but Marty had been killing it in midfield.

Annabel checked her phone and I saw her clicking through Snapchat. “Oh, the gymnasium looks really cool,” she said, showing me a picture.

“Oh, neat,” I said, catching a glimpse of the blue and white decorations.

“You’re going, right? Marty said you’re coming with us?”

“Yeah,” I said. “But me and a few others are sneaking out early to see The Force Awakens.”

“Why though?” asked Annabel. “Didn’t it just come out?”

“Well, we don’t want to see spoilers,” I explained. “I’ve had to be offline all day just to avoid them, which is really hard, harder than you’d think because people try to hide spoilers in memes…” I trailed off as I realized she wasn’t listening. There were now five minutes left on the clock and the coach subbed Marty out, who waved to us once he got to the sidelines.

“Oh my God,” said Annabel, suddenly, back on Snapchat. “Did you see that dashcam video of the guy throwing that cop? Here? In NYC?”

Jessica had mentioned it to me, apparently, she knew the guy, but I hadn’t seen that the video hit mainstream social media. “Good for him,” I said. “Stick it to the man.”

“Seriously?” Annabel asked. “He threw a _policeman._ At his own police car.”

 _What… is her dad a cop or something? I always got that vibe._ “Oh… I mean… it’s just cool. You know? Like… dude’s strong.”

Annabel shook her head. “My dad catches people like him,” she said, and my head jerked up to look at her. “He doesn’t tell me much since it’s like government business or whatever, but they’re dangerous.”

“Okay,” I said, just hoping to shut down the conversation. _Marty, you really know how to pick ‘em_. I wondered if he knew.

“I mean, don’t you agree?” Annabel asked me. “Especially after that thing with Sokovia—”

The final buzzer rang, and the game ended, Marty’s team gathering on the sidelines to celebrate even making the playoffs, and I climbed down off the bleachers to greet them. “Yes, let’s go Midtown Tigers!” I was determined to ignore Annabel, not wanting it to sour my mood. _Yeah, so she hates mutants. Who doesn’t, honestly? We suck._

Marty greeted us as soon as his team disbanded, running over to us on the opposite sideline, practically leaping across the field. “That was the furthest we’ve made it in years!” he exclaimed. Annabel linked hands with him as we walked to catch the subway, and Marty replayed the game for us all the way to the platform, even though we had been there to watch it. As we boarded the train, Annabel put us on a schedule.

“Okay, so it’s four now, and the dance starts at seven, so we have three hours to get ready.” She had dropped her stuff off at our apartment last night and some people from the soccer team and Marty’s other friend group were coming over to the apartment to get ready. “And then everyone is coming at five!”

“ **Please don’t make me socialize** ,” I whispered to Marty, and he smirked.

“Oh, come on,” he whispered back. “You’ll have fun.”

We got back to the apartment late after the train was delayed. I barely had time to clean up in the bathroom and change my outfit for the dance— a long sleeve, black turtlenecked dress that hid the wings—before people started arriving. I stared at myself in the mirror before changing, trying to hype myself up. _Look, you did that musical last month. Now try this. Plus, you, Peter, Ned, and Kate are leaving early, so it won’t even be that long._ Still, I found myself hiding in the bathroom for a long time before finally emerging to a full living room.

“Ooh, Willow, I love your dress!” one of the girls chirped. “It’s really cute!”

“Thanks,” I managed. “Yours is really nice too. Really… blue. Fits the theme.”

I was mostly quiet as the others talked over pizza (not Dominos) and discussed drama that occurred that week at school. I texted the group chat I had with the others and counted down the minutes until we were leaving. _Just think about Star Wars later. That’ll be fun._

“Has anyone seen my eyeliner pen?” Annabel called from the bathroom as she did her makeup in the mirror. “I can’t find it.”

“Lose it?” Marty asked. “Guys, has anyone seen an eyeliner pen?”

“ **I didn’t lose it, I just misplaced it**.”

“I have one,” I offered. “Want to borrow it?”

“That would be _amazing_.”

I sighed and got up, opening my drawer in the bathroom to rummage through the mess and find one of my eyeliner pens, one of the cheap ones. _God, it’s in here somewhere_. I pulled out a hairbrush and extra toothpaste, setting those on the counter, growing self-conscious as Annabel stared down into the messy drawer. My finger grasped something metal and when Annabel looked away, I fumbled for the object and found a small flash drive nestled among my hair ties. _Jesus. I gotta get more organized._ I slipped the flashdrive into the one pocket on my dress and finally found the eyeliner.

“Here,” I said, holding it up. “Sorry it took so long.”

“We ready to go?” one of the guys called from the other room. “Should we start calling Ubers?”

“I’ll be right out,” Annabel yelled, and I forced myself to not cover my ears when she did so. “I’ll give this right back,” she told me. “If you wanna grab your jacket and things.”

Getting Marty’s friends all out of the door on time was almost impossible, as the one guy who wore a tie kept asking for help to fix it, and one girl’s eyeliner just wasn’t even as she kept trying to fix it. But finally, finally, we were on our way, and I texted the others to let them know.


	61. Forever Young

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and her friends attend the December school dance and later bail to see Star Wars

  * **Words:** 662
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Annabel Carson, Kate Gray, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Michelle Jones
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“real smooth, tripping over air.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“anything, just call me, okay?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Forever Young - Alphaville](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dt1TcDHrkQYg&t=ZjNkNjEwZGE2ZDc0NDZkZjJmMzMwYzNjMzcyM2QxMGNlOWY2NzlhMywwd0Y3UXVEMg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618306522761576448%2Fforever-young&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _i was supposed to have my graduation tomorrow lmao so i’m coping by writing a TON_



—————————————————————————–

Slow 80s pop played over the massive speakers in the gym as I walked into the dance with Marty and his friends—the room covered with winter-themed decorations and lit by string lights. I spotted Peter and Ned, who were standing with a few freshmen from the decathlon team, including M.J., who threw me a friendly middle-finger as I walked over. It caught me off guard, she had barely given me a “hi” before and I stumbled over the slightly big flats I was wearing.

“ **Real smooth, tripping over air** ,” M.J. said, and I found myself laughing as I approached the group and I got a rare smile back. The dance floor was crowed with people, so we stood on the outskirts, for now, observing the dance.

“Hey, Willow,” said Peter. “We didn’t think you’d make it!”

I rolled my eyes. “Marty’s friends take _forever_ to get ready. Where’s Kate?”

“Right here,” said Kate, joining our small circle of people. “Sorry, was getting some water.” She nodded at my dress. “I have no idea how you’re never hot.”

I was sweating a little, but I shrugged. “Thin blood.”

“I told you we should have worn ties,” Ned said to Peter. “All the juniors and seniors have ties on.”

“You guys are _fine,_ ” Kate said. “Can we go dance? Please?”

Ned and Peter exchanged a glance. “Like, over there?” Peter asked. “It’s… I don’t know.” Still, Kate was able to convince me and the boys to find our way to the edge of the dance floor, still in the action but in our own space. We danced under the flashing lights and laughed at the DJs—one of the science teachers—awkward attempt to switch out the lyrics to “Party in the USA” to “Party at MSST.” We lost most of the other decathlon team to the bleachers, where they sat and talked, but that was okay.

_Maybe I spoke too soon. Maybe dances aren’t that bad._

Eventually, Peter and Ned split off to find a few people from one of their classes, and Kate and I went outside to get some fresh air, where we met up with Marty. “Where’s Annabel?” I asked.

“Bathroom,” he said.

“Going well?” Kate asked.

“Yeah,” said Marty, smiling cheekily. “Yeah, it is.”

We sat outside, listening to the gossip of other students around us—for some reason, the outside patio seemed to be the place for drama—and took in the cool winter air, just as a few tiny snowflakes blew around in the wind.

“Hold on,” Kate said, checking her phone. “The boys want to leave for Star Wars soon and I gotta say hi to some people from drama. Be right back.” She went inside and Marty and I stood under the pavilion.

“All right,” I said. “I’ll see you after the movie?”

“Sounds good,” Marty said. “ **Anything, just call me, okay?** ” He looked like he was about to say something else but then held his knuckles out for a fist bump.

“Ten-four,” I said. “See you at home. Go get ‘em, tiger.”

“See you later.”

I went back inside to meet with Kate, Ned, and Peter, who were waiting by the door. In the hallway bathroom outside the gym, I changed into comfier clothes and slipped my dress into my backpack. “Ready for Star Wars?” I asked.

“I just heard a spoiler,” Ned said, shaking his head. “May the force be with us.”

Kate punched him in the arm. “Don’t say _anything!_ ”

We practically ran to catch the subway, laughing, chasing each other through the chilly streets, snapping a selfie as we passed Stark Tower, panting, and yelling theories about the movie to each other. I felt like I was about to burst from happiness, like I could leap from the ground and just rocket into the air on the spot. The wind picked up, knocking over a sign advertising hot pizza and we finally give in to the cold, running for the theater.


	62. I Never Dreamed Of This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow returns to the apartment after the dance

  * **Words:** 1363
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Kate Gray, Officer Dunphee
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“please don’t leave me alone.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“and then everything just disappears.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[This Love - Ryan Adams](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DoE_LdPgNW_M&t=MTU3NmNlY2NkMTRlZWNiZjU5ODQyZDM1ZTZmMzQwNjU1ZmIyM2Q0MSw2UGJvVHZjMw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618333633050181632%2Fi-never-dreamed-of-this&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _FUCK I KNOW I KNEW THIS SCENE WAS COMING SINCE CHAPTER ONE BUT I STILL CANT AHHHHHH_



—————————————————————————–

I returned to our apartment late that night, right after midnight. Kate was with me—since she was going to sleep over. “Marty’s dad is out at that conference this weekend,” I told her as we took the elevator. “So, it’s gonna be a party. We can watch the History Channel as late as we want.”

“Yes!” exclaimed Kate. “God, that channel was good as a kid, but ever since fifth grade, it’s next-level. I hope you got snacks.”

“Plenty. Marty’s friend only cleaned out half of what we bought.”

We got to our floor and chattered as we walked down the hallway, Kate started on and on about The Force Awakens and who she thought Snoke was—as well as her thoughts on the demise of Han Solo. “I’m literally devastated,” she said. “Like, I had a feeling they’d pull something like that but _Han?_ ”

I heard a thump from down the hall, at our apartment, and froze. Something felt wrong, all of the sudden, and I couldn’t figure out why. “Wait, stop,” I whispered to Kate.

“What?” she asked. “Everything all right?”

I listened harder and I was sure I heard footsteps, something metallic. _That’s not Marty. Or Annabel._ “I don’t know,” I said. “Something doesn’t feel right. Something’s wrong.” Then I saw the apartment door. It was open, just a crack. _Someone else is in there. Marty would never leave it open._

“What do you mean?” Kate asked. “Did you lose something?”

“No, no,” I said. My hands were already shaking, and my heart felt like it had sunk to my stomach. My legs were numb with adrenaline. “Can… can you just wait here for a second? I’m going to go check the apartment.”

“Wait, I’ll come with you.”

“No!” I snapped, though my voice was still hushed. “Stay right here and don’t follow me unless I tell you it’s okay.”

“Willow, you’re scaring me.”

“Stay here!”

I took several cautious steps towards the open door and pushed it open with my shoulder, both of my hands out in front of me. “Marty?” I called, quietly. “Is everything okay?” The apartment was quiet again and I stood in the living room, my knees trembling. “Marty,” I called again, this time a little more forcefully. The apartment was completely dark and I turned on my phone’s flashlight to see better.

Taking a deep breath, I walked towards his bedroom door, balancing on the balls of my feet, trying to make as little noise as possible. _I should have told Kate to leave, she shouldn’t be here. I don’t know what’s going on._

I knocked on Marty’s bedroom door as gently as possible with a single knuckle. _Please be me overreacting. Please._ There was no answer, and with that, I opened his door as slowly as possible. As I pushed the door and it creaked further open, I only had half a glimpse of the body lying on the floor before the room lit up blue. A figure was momentarily illuminated in the middle of the room and I was shot backward with a beam, the world going dark as every atom in my body felt like it was on fire, then numb and nothing. **And then everything just disappeared.**

I heard sirens outside, blue and red lights flashing off the apartment walls, my body still sprawled out on the floor as I cracked an eye open and realized Kate was shaking me. “Willow, Willow, wake up,” she said, and I tried to sit up, but my body still felt like it wasn’t my own, vertigo consuming even the smallest of my movements.

“What happened?” I asked. “Where’s Marty?”

I crawled towards his bedroom door, on autopilot now as Kate pulled me back. “Willow, I called the police, they’re coming up, don’t go in there—”

His door was still open, though, and now, in the lights of the emergency vehicles and police outside, I saw the body on the floor was his, his eyes still open wide, staring up at the ceiling, lifeless, as blood trickled out over his face, blood from a bullet hole—

“Marty!” I screamed, and even though I was still shaking, I tried getting up and running to help him, falling as soon as I stood up, and dragging myself over as Kate called for me to stop, to get away, to not look—

“Marty, Marty, wake up,” I whispered. “Hey, come on.” I nudged his arm. “Dude, you’re scaring me, I—” His arm flopped back to the ground and his chest wasn’t moving. “Come on,” I said again. “Marty, come on, you’re fine, we’re gonna fix this, Kate called the police, everything is going to be fine, **_please don’t leave me alone_**. Just hang on, okay? Please? Marty, come on.”

“Willow,” said Kate, “Willow…” Her voice was shaking and when I turned to look at her, there were tears streaming down her face and she choked trying to get the next words out. “Willow… I think…”

In the street, I heard the chattering of walkie-talkies and voices and I leaned over Marty again. “Marty, please, come on.” I shook him but he didn’t respond, and I was crying too now, my face collapsing in shock, the air knocked from my chest as my foggy brain tried to keep up and understand what I was seeing. “Marty—”

I felt the wind pick up around me—I couldn’t control it—and as I spiraled it got worse and worse until I passed out again—

This time I woke up as a police officer carried me away from Marty’s body and I saw the destruction in the apartment, all the windows blown out and broken, framed on the walls shattered, the place was completely torn apart.

“Shh, shh,” the police officer said, and she shined a light in my face. “Are you okay? What’s your name?”

“Willow,” I managed. “Where’s Marty, he needs help, he’s—”

“Okay, Willow,” said the woman. “I’m Officer Dunphee with the police. There are paramedics coming upstairs now. Are you hurt?”

I don’t remember leaving the apartment or taking the elevator down to the street, but I do remember the officer telling me not to look when we passed by Marty’s room, even though I had already seen. By the time my memory kicked in again, I was sitting on the edge of the ambulance with a blanket around me and Officer Dunphee sitting next to me as police and officials came in and out of the building. I had no idea what time it was.

“Kate,” I said suddenly. “She was up there. Kate Gray. Where is she?”

“Kate’s fine,” said the officer. “We think she got a concussion, so she’s going to get checked out. The paramedics got her.”

“Concussion from…?”

“You don’t remember?”

“No. Where is Marty? Can I see him? Is he okay?” My thoughts began rushing together, so many of them, at once. The dance seemed like eons ago and time seemed to have slowed down to beats, to individual breaths. “His dad is out of town, he needs to come home.” I got down off the ambulance back, but Officer Dunphee shook her head, putting a hand on my shoulder and guiding me back down. “The doctors still need to check you out. Is there anyone we should contact?”

“No, just his dad,” I said.

“Was Marty your step-brother?”

“No,” I said. “I just live with them. Family friends.” _Oh, God. What happened in there? Who—_ The wind began to pick up in the streets outside and glass shards from the broken windows scraped across the ground as the blanket whipped around me.

“Wind’s been awful tonight,” the officer commented.

“When can I see him?” I asked again. “Did they already take him to the hospital? He lost a lot of blood and blood makes him faint, his anxiety is going to be bad—”

“No, no, you can’t…” the officer started. “Willow, your friend Marty was found dead when we arrived.”

“I—but when can I talk to him?” I asked. “Has he woken up yet?”

“No, Willow,” Officer Dunphee said again. “I’m sorry, but Marty is dead.”


	63. The Executioner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow talks at the station with Officer Dunphee

  * **Words:** 1934
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Erin Dunphee
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“it wasn’t me, i swear!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“just make sure you’ve eaten.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[2.0_6-madame3xecutioner.oga - Mac Quayle](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DQ_UT1lhkwBY&t=MTE5ODMwYjBhNmRjNGQ4NWJlMjMzNmFiZTdjZDU2MjI2MjI1MTkxZCxQMVd2YW9weg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618417175732109312%2Fthe-executioner&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _oh ariana we’re really in it now_



—————————————————————————–

Hours later, I was at the police station, the blanket still wrapped around me, sitting on an office couch in an interview room, staring at the blood that was on my jeans. _Marty’s blood._ My brain had all but shut down as the night wore on, hours passed, and when I checked my phone at three in the morning, the time didn’t feel real. I kept replaying the moments after waking up in the apartment, the way the officers’ flashlights lit up the place, the way blood was splattered on Marty’s nightstand. I felt like I was sleepwalking but couldn’t bring myself to sleep beyond my head drooping down a few times.

I picked at the peanut butter crackers and water bottle left on the table, but I only sipped at the water, too nauseous to touch the crackers. I felt like I had been waiting forever in that white room when the door finally opened and Detective Dunphee came in.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

“I just saw my best friend’s dead,” I said. “So not good.” I didn’t sound real as I said it. “And I don’t know what’s going on—I don’t feel safe, I—”

“Okay, okay,” Detective Dunphee said. “I’m gonna stay here with you, okay? I’m Erin Dunphee, we met earlier.” She forced a smile.

“Hi,” I said. “I’m Willow.”

“And could you tell me again how old you are?”

“Fourteen. I’m in ninth grade.”

She smiled again, this time with her eyes. “Wow, first year of high school, huh? That’s exciting. So, you live with Marty and his father?” Erin asked.

“Yeah.” I was already wondering if they had been able to piece anything together, if she thought one of _us_ did it, if Marty’s dad knew—

“How long have you been living there?” She scribbled notes onto a white pad, and I watched as she covered it in black ink.

“Um… about a year. You can talk to my lawyer… she set up the arrangement. I had a… complicated situation at home.” _Oh, no, please don’t ask about how this happened or why I’m with them, don’t—_

“I just want to get an understanding of who’s who. Would anyone want to hurt Marty? Just any information you could give us about why anyone would want to do this.”

“No, god no,” I said. _I mean, he did that stuff scamming people online but… that beam that hit me… I don’t think that was just some internet creep wielding a weapon like that. That was… that was something else._

“Anything he may have been involved in?” Erin asked.

“He was on the soccer team,” I said. “Had a bunch of friends there and he’s is—uh—was? Dating a girl from the girls’ soccer team. Annabel Carson? He also tried the musical once. Normal stuff.”

“Was anybody drinking tonight? Drugs? I understand you were coming from a school dance.”

“No, of course not,” I said. “Me and Kate split up with Marty around nine to go see Star Wars, which is when we left the dance. He didn’t drink before that and I don’t think he did after. I mean, he may have, but I don’t know. I wasn’t there.”

“Do you know what might have happened to his laptop?”

 _His laptop? Who would take his laptop?_ “No, why?” I asked.

“We didn’t recover any electronics from him, no phone, no computer in his room, even though we know he had one. Your apartment took some serious damage, and the windows were shattered when we were on the ground. We really need to recover one of his devices to help us figure out who killed him, or what happened in those moments.”

“Okay…” _Someone came with intent. They targeted Marty. Why? And why his laptop?_ “Do… do you think _I_ have it?” I asked. “I don’t.”

“Can you describe to me the events leading up to when we arrived, Willow?”

“Do you think I did this?” I asked suddenly. “None of this, **it wasn’t me, I swear.** You can check my movie tickets or whatever, or the cameras outside the building. Kate and I… we just arrived and…”

“I’m just trying to establish a timeline. Your friend Kate gave us one version, and I’m trying to verify it.”

“What did she say?”

“I want to hear yours first.”

I gripped the water bottle in my hand and crunched it in slightly, trying to ground myself. None of it felt real and I hoped that if I tried hard enough, I’d wake up and Marty would be alive, waiting for me to get ready for school, complaining about being late. “Kate and I came back from the movies around midnight? I think? Maybe a little after that. When we got out of the elevator I—I noticed that the door was cracked open, which seemed weird, and I heard a thump? So, I told Kate to wait in the hall and I went to go look. I went in and went to Marty’s room since I knew his dad was out at the conference and he was the only one that was supposed to be home. I went in and… Marty was just…” I couldn’t find the words.

We were quiet for a moment as Erin continued taking notes and then paused to think, scrunching her lips up and touching the bottom of her pen to her chin. “You’ve never seen anything like that before, have you.”

I shook my head, even though that wasn’t quite true. “No. And for a second, I thought I saw another person in that room. They hit me with something and then I woke up.”

“And when did you wake up?”

“When you brought me over to the couch.”

“Can you describe the person you saw?”

I shut my eyes, trying to remember. “Um… medium height. Skinny-ish. I don’t know anything else, if they were male or female or whatever. It was too dark.”

She studied me for a moment after she wrote down more notes, and then sighed as she looked up at the florescent lights. “Is there anything else I should know?”

_If I tell her about that other weapon—if Kate already hasn’t—then someone like SHIELD is going to get called in. Or that other group they mentioned. And if SHIELD comes in and they start putting the pieces together…_

“Um…” I pick at the corner of the peanut butter crackers’ wrapper again. “I know Marty liked blackmailing people online.”

The mood in the room shifted, and Erin shifted her position in her chair as she leaned in. “Tell me more about that.”

I told her everything I knew, knowing that it wouldn’t help, that none of those people had anything to do with whatever happened tonight, but hoping it would give her an answer. Maybe Marty’s dad an answer. There needed to be some acceptable answer for all of this. _Someone Marty blackmailed came after him. Took his laptop and phone. Destroyed the apartment. The End._

There was another long pause after I finished, the pit in my stomach only growing and as I sat in that interview room, I began to feel lightheaded again and felt the wind pick up around my hands. I sat on them, but I could feel the air shifting in the room, and the corner of the notepad began to flutter. She looked up from her writing, first at me, and then at the vent above the door. “Heat must have kicked on,” she said, standing up and organizing her notes. “I’ll be back in a bit, then. Can I get you anything? Something else to eat?”

“I’m fine.”

I was trying to hold back but the pressure was growing and I couldn’t contain it. _What’s wrong with me? Why don’t I have control anymore? Oh no—_

“I **just wanted to make sure you’ve eaten** ,” she said. “Let me see what else we have.” Before I could protest, she shut the door.

I exhaled, the wind leaving my body in a gust, rattling the table and chair, my ears popped as I tried to contain it and get my heart rate back to normal. _Not here, don’t do this here. Whatever is wrong with you now, don’t explode here._

I realized that I could hear Detective Dunphee talking in the other room, even though it was in a fairly hushed voice. I curled up on the couch, trying to block out all other sensory input and listen to their conversation.

_“Kate Gray gave a similar story. She said that Willow found the body and was out after being hit with something.”_

_“Kid didn’t show any injuries when they checked her out though,_ ” a male voice said.

_“No, I know. Kate said that the windows were broken by the attacker, and they gave her the concussion as well.”_

_“How? How were the windows broken? Are we dealing with… I don’t know… someone with abilities? Because if we are…”_ I felt the wind in the room pick up again and I clenched my fists as tightly as I could, shutting my eyes and keeping my head down on the table.

_Kate… that’s not what happened. I broke the windows, razed the apartment. Hurt you. Why are you lying? I know you saw me wake up before… whatever happened._

_“More of an act of vandalism,”_ I heard another voice add. “ _I mean look at the apartment. And the missing devices?”_ Their voices faded as they moved to another, even further room, and I again wondered what time it was. Eventually, Detective Dunphee returned, holding onto the backpack I had brought with me and that they made me drop off at the door.

“Okay,” she said. “Do you have anywhere to go?”

I stood up shakily. “I don’t want to go back there.”

“Who do we need to call?”

_Not Marty’s dad. Not Peter’s Aunt May._

“Jessica Jones,” I said. “She’s a friend, lives in Hell’s Kitchen. I have her number.” It was six in the morning, and I hadn’t slept all night. I rang for Jessica, but it went straight to voicemail, which meant her phone died and because it was Saturday morning, she was probably hungover.

“No answer?” Detective Dunphee asked.

“No answer,” I said.

By that morning, none of Marty’s devices had been found and I was without a place to go. Detective Dunphee looked around the station and finally put a guiding hand on my shoulder, which I shrugged away, afraid she’d feel the wings, something I had just barely avoided when talking with the medical examiner before I got to the station. We walked through the station, and she grabbed something off her desk as we went by. “I got you these,” she said. “Do you like strawberry Poptarts?”

“I’ve never tried one.”

“Okay, well I’d like you to eat something if possible, all right?”

“Where are we going now?” I asked, ignoring her previous statement.

“Here,” said Detective Dunphee, opening a door to a room lined with a few bunks and outfitted with grey blankets. “Why don’t you get some sleep until we hear back?” I sat down on one of the beds but didn’t lay down, instead just staring at the floor, my mouth in a hard line. “Hey,” said Detective Dunphee, sitting down on the bunk across for me. “You’re going to be okay. If you want to talk…”

“I don’t want to talk,” I said. “I’m fine.” At that moment, I knew the word I needed. _Sumerkey_. _Sumerkey. Sumerkey._

_I don’t want to feel anything._


	64. Not a Tear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jessica picks Willow up at the station

  * **Words:** 1092
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones, Erin Dunphee
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Take it from someone who has a PhD in revenge, go on the internet, look up some cute animal videos and then decide what you’re next move will be.”](https://the-moon-dust-writings.tumblr.com/post/180121194313/writing-prompts)
    * [“eventually… you just move on.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Baby Mine - Arcade Fire](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DqpYOstfcQBs&t=ODc3YTYxZDFhMDg2ODQ1NzU2Yjk2MGNjN2RmZTU1OTljN2NiZDhjZSx6UUIwdEdkWA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618517100106039296%2Fnever-a-tear&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _i noticed a few more people have been reading in the last few days! thanks for stopping in! I appreciated the kudos :D I’m glad to know some people are enjoying my silly Marvel OC writing_



—————————————————————————–

Jessica picked me up at that station that afternoon, finding me sitting on a wooden bench inside, backpack at my feet, running on only a few hours of sleep, still in the same clothes from the night before.

“Willow,” she said. “What happened?” She looked over at Officer Dunphee, who had brought her in, for an explanation. “What happened to her?” Officer Dunphee led her a few paces away and they talked in hushed voices, as Jessica grew more agitated. “ _No, I know. She doesn’t_ have _family. Where’s her friend’s dad? Yeah, whatever. His dad always seemed like kind of an ass to me.”_

Jessica turned back to me as Officer Dunphee crossed her arms. “Let’s go, Willow. We’re going back to my place until you hear from Marty’s dad.” I got up and followed her out silently, too tired to talk. The blood was still on my jeans. We took a taxi back to her apartment. I kept nodding off during the ride, finally relaxing since leaving the police station, exhausted from the stress and tension I had been carrying all night. I couldn’t stop replaying those moments back at the apartment over, and over, and over again. I noticed Jessica watching me with a pitying stare, eyebrows knotted in concern before she sighed and looked out her window.

“You should get cleaned up before you sleep,” said Jessica as we took the elevator up to her apartment. “You look like shit.”

“Thanks,” I said, speaking for the first time.

When we got inside, she rifled through her drawers to find a change of clothes, handing me a long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants. “The bathroom’s in the back,” she said, pointing me towards it. “I don’t have clean towels right now—”

“That’s all right,” I said.

In the bathroom, I cranked the shower up as hot as it would go, burning my skin and my wings, which I unfolded for the first time in days. I scrubbed my skin raw, trying to remove the specks of blood from my hands and wash the feeling of losing control out of me. _Why do I have a feeling that they meant to kill me with that beam and instead fucked me up big-time?_

I got out of the shower just as it began to run cold and stepped out onto the tiled floor, shivering, doing my best to dry off without a towel. The mirror above the pink sink was fogged up and as I crouched down on the floor, I spotted a cockroach skittering across the floor. I stomped my foot a little to warn her away, but she instead stopped in front of my big toe. I almost grabbed the shampoo bottle to crush her and then stopped and started crying instead.

_Sumerkey. Sumerkey. Sumerkey. Don’t feel anything. It’s not worth it._

I stood up and got dressed, wiping the condensation off the mirror to look at myself, at my tangle of wet hair, looking tiny in the oversized shirt and sweats, my eyeliner still smudged. The word had faded on my arm, but it was still there in permanent marker. _I’ll rewrite it when I can._

I slept on the orange couch for the rest of the afternoon, only waking to respond to the myriad of text messages on my phone from Peter and Ned. None from Kate. I then fell back asleep and woke to Jessica shaking me awake around eight that night. “Willow! Hey!”

I sat straight up, jerking out of dreamless sleep, a breath caught in my throat. I realized that my hands felt tingly again and the pit in my stomach had returned. As she stood over me, I looked around her apartment and saw papers still drifting around the room, the alcohol on her desk lapping at the sides of the glass. “What? Did I… do that?”

“You turned my apartment into a wind tunnel,” said Jessica. “I was afraid the windows would break.”

“No,” I breathed, my heart pounding as I clenched my hands together so tightly that my fingernails dug into my skin. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s going on. I haven’t been able to control…”

“You need to get a handle on it,” said Jessica. She huffed and rubbed the palm of her on her forehead as she surveyed the damage. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound like a dick.”

“Probably deserve it,” I mumbled.

“Look,” she said. “I’m not good with this whole… making people feel better. So… this is as good as it gets.”

“I don’t want sympathy anyways,” I said, burying whatever feelings of loss had churned up. “Whoever did this. I’m going to find them. The detective told me enough to start doing my own research. That’s what I do next. And when I find them—”

 **“Take it from someone who has a PhD in revenge, go on the internet, look up some cute animal videos and then decide what you’re next move will be.** Don’t do anything rash. Trust me on this. It won’t help anyone.”

“It’ll make me feel better,” I said.

She didn’t respond and walked over to her desk as I plopped back down on the couch. It was easier to be angry than to be sad. Anger was something I understood, something I could process. It gave me a way to fight back.

“I ordered a pizza,” Jessica said. “You should eat something.”

“Not hungry,” I said, even though that wasn’t true. _When was the last time I ate a real meal? Was it lunch yesterday afternoon? At school? Before Marty’s game? It feels like forever ago._

I texted the Lab Rats, finally telling them the news, and that we had to meet as soon as possible, in person. Preferably off the grid. I texted Fanisimo separately. _Fanisimo, I need your help. Something’s wrong with my powers and I can’t control them._

When the pizza came, we went and sat up on her roof as she projected a movie onto the building wall across from us. It was freezing out, but neither of us minded. “Nothing better than dinner and a movie after a crap-ass day,” she said, taking a swig from her drink.

“Understatement of the year,” I responded, not taking my eyes off the movie. It was fucking _Dumbo_ , which I had never seen and was getting oddly emotional over.

“ **Eventually… you just move on** ,” she said, twisting the cap back on her flask. “It won’t get easier; you just learn how to manage it.”

 _I don’t know how I’ll manage this. I can barely manage my powers right now_. _How am I supposed to just move on?_


	65. Against The Tide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marty’s funeral

  * **Words:** 1569
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Mr. Fields, Kate Gray, Annabel Carson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“and where do i go?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“What did you expect? For everything to just go back to normal?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“why didn’t you tell me?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Boats Against the Current - Craig Armstrong](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DBBELe8zfED0&t=OGZjMDNiOGFkZmI5ZjM1OWIzODY3NGM1MmEyYTUzZjM3MDA3YjA0MixVdTI0SzlWQw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618604531383697408%2Fagainst-the-tide&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _this shit HURTED_



—————————————————————————–

Marty’s funeral was held on a Tuesday. It snowed.

I returned to school the Monday after it all happened, trying to regain some sense of normalcy, but when I walked in alone that morning, I had never heard the halls that quiet. The teachers offered sympathetic smiles as students walked by, but no one talked, no one joked around at the lockers, and people moved from one class to the next as if we were in a trance. The soccer teams had shown up with blue ribbons pinned to their shirts, and when the morning announcements came, the vice-principal’s voice cracked as she read the news.

People seemed almost afraid to talk to me or make eye contact as if any gesture would cause me to break down. I sat with my head down in most classes, staring at the floor, just trying to make it through one class at a time. None of the teachers said anything when I turned in worksheets blank, my name written at the top.

Kate was not at school, and she never returned any of my texts. I didn’t see her until the funeral.

On that Tuesday, school buses took us to the funeral, which was public. The wake was for family members only—and I wasn’t invited.

We packed into St. Giles, all the students standing in the back of the church. His dad spoke, and I saw his mom crying in the front row. I had stayed at Jessica’s since that night and had hardly talked to Marty’s dad, beyond when I stopped at the apartment before school Monday morning. Detectives had the place marked up and I had to be escorted to get my school binders and my rats. It seemed there was nothing to say, and when I went into the living room to find a book, there was still blood on the floor and tarps covering the windows. Marty’s dad had been staying at a hotel.

Girls in my class were passing around the little packages of tissues and when I got handed one, I looked up to see it was Annabel handing it to me. Her eyes were bloodshot and her face blotchy. I took the tissue, but I realized that as hard as I wanted to, I couldn’t cry. I didn’t cry at Marty’s funeral.

Kate was standing alone at the end when we were milling around waiting for the buses. She had sunglasses clipped to the front of her jacket and bags under her eyes.

“Kate?” I asked. “Hey, I was worried when I didn’t hear from you.”

She looked up at me but didn’t smile. “Hey, Willow.”

“How are you?” I asked. “They said you got a concussion, I’m so sorry—”

“ **Why didn’t you tell me?** ” she interrupted.

“Tell you…”

“You know what,” she hissed, her eyes darting around to make sure no one was listening. “What I saw that night… I don’t even know… I don’t even know if I know who you are. I mean… I saw what you can do.”

“Then why did you lie to the detectives? We should talk—”

“No, no, I don’t think… I don’t want to.” Kate said, and the tone of her voice made me sick. “I can’t do this.”

“Well, maybe we can hang once you’re feeling better and—”

“No,” she said firmly, and a few people turned around to look at us. “ **What did you expect? For everything to just go back to normal?** I’m sorry, Willow. But I just can’t… I’m scared,” she said, her voice cracking. “So, please, just stay the fuck away from me.”

“You know me,” I said again.

“Do I?” She leaned in. “You know what I saw on his killer’s jacket? A fucking _HYDRA_ patch. I’m not stupid, Willow. Marty sure as hell wasn’t involved with that shit, and what I saw _you_ do?”

“I’m not HYDRA, if that’s what you think,” I said, my mind racing as I took in this new information.

“No,” Kate said quietly. “But it wasn’t that person that gave me this concussion. It was you.” She checked her phone. “I gotta go.”

“Kate!” She ignored me, walking away over the frozen ground, to a car waiting outside the church. “Kate!” I called again, and she turned around once more, shaking her head, before getting into the car. I sat down on the steps of the church, searching the crowd for Peter or Ned, but I thought better of it and instead of getting back on the bus, I left the church and walked for blocks and blocks, only stopping when it began to get dark.

I thought about what Kate had said and now it seemed to confirm what I had been told all along. _They will never understand your abilities. Everywhere you go, chaos will follow._ They were right. _This is your fault._ I went back to the apartment to grab a few things and tried to get a hold on things, continuing to text the Lab Rats as we scrambled to organize a meetup.

When I stepped inside, the lights were on, and Marty’s dad was sitting at the kitchen counter surveying the damage. It was freezing inside, and he was still wearing his winter coat.

“Hi Mr. Fields,” I said, quietly. He sighed and turned to look at me.

“I want you out by tomorrow morning.”

“Out… like back at Jessica’s?” I asked.

“ _Out_ ,” he said, his voice raised. “I want you _out_ of this apartment. Take your shit and get out.”

“ **And where do I go?** I don’t have anywhere to—”

“I don’t care where you go!” he yelled. “I want you gone. Do you understand? My son is dead, my place is destroyed, and I should never have taken you in.” He took a sip of his drink. “Fucking Jeri.”

“I don’t have anywhere to go!”

“I DON’T CARE!” He turned away and looked back into the living room, where shards of glass still littered the floor. “My son is dead. Do you understand that?”

I rushed past him, into the guest bedroom and locked the door behind me. I could feel myself shaking and a breeze passed around the room as I grabbed my hands. _Don’t lose it. Not now_. I looked around the room, the first place I had been able to call home since I was six. At the pictures taped to the walls, the silly drawings Marty had made for me, the tech that Peter and I collected over the summer.

With a shuddering sigh, I dumped my backpack out onto the bed, surveying its contents, sorting through what I wanted to take with me. _I don’t even know where I’m going yet._ I didn’t want to go back to Jessica’s, I didn’t want to talk to Peter and Ned. I wanted to be alone. I _had_ to be alone.

I sorted through my clothes, stuffed them into a trash bag, and packed the rest of my belongings back into my backpack. Stuffed elephant. Photos and drawings in a Ziploc bag. Laptop. The Shrek umbrella that Kate got me last Christmas. The binoculars from Jess. I found the flash drive from the night before and plugged it into my computer, planning to use it for back up.

However, when I opened up the drive, there was already a file on there. It was a giant text file, but when I opened it, there were only a few paragraphs written:

_willow– i hid this in your bathroom drawer since you’ve never clean it and I don’t think anyone will find it. if you’re seeing this, you can just give it back to me. unless something happened to me._

_if something happened to me, you should extract the files hidden in this notepad. the password is based on a book recommendation I gave you. no spaces, all lowercase. once you unzip it, it’s pretty self-explanatory._

_ok now if you’re still reading this come bail me out of jail or whatever. use the shitton of cash i’ve been stealing from my dad and that’s in a bean can in the ceiling above the toilet. i was saving it for weed but whatvers. thx. xoxo MARTYY_

I reread the last line several times over, trying not to let my heart break. _xoxo MARTYY._

My heart pounding, I opened up WinRar and tried to extract the file, but I had no idea what the password would be. _Book recommendation? When?_ I heard the apartment door shut and receding footsteps down the hall and I jumped off the bed and went into the bathroom while Marty’s dad was out of the apartment. I grabbed my toiletries and then I put the lid down on the toilet and stood on top of it, pushing the ceiling tile in and searching the space around the hole. My hand closed on a metal can and I pulled it down as dust fell into my face.

It was filled with cash.

Not wanting to see Marty’s dad anymore, I went back to the guest room and finished packing, tucking the drive and can into my backpack and slinging the trashbag of clothes over my shoulder. I surveyed the now-empty room and sighed. I would be going back to Jessica’s to get Nedward and Boxer Joe. And then I’d be leaving there, too. This part of my life was over.


	66. What I Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow finds herself homeless again

  * **Words:** 1419
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Fanisimo
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“great. perfect. _nice_. fuck this.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“I just needed to hear your voice.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Wake Me Up When September Ends - Green Day](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DrdpBZ5_b48g&t=N2UyODAwYzBiYWJlMmE3ZjU0ODdiMDI3ZjE4OGYwMmI2ZGRhY2ZjNCwyaHJ0Y3ppMA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618655912026079232%2Fwhat-i-lost&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _thanks again for reading!!!!!! i’m :D_



—————————————————————————–

Remember that building I mentioned, the one with the water tower on the roof? The one I said _if I ever needed a place to hide out, this would be it?_

Well.

I bought a tent and space heater and set up camp underneath the water tower, which shielded the tent from most of the elements. Inside, I snaked in an extension cord and siphoned off the building’s electricity to charge my phone and laptop, and power the heater and cheap Christmas lights I bought from Walmart. Marty’s “bail money” had come in handy. _Homeless again. This fucking sucks._

I showered in the locker room before school and got ready in the bathroom. I skimmed change from the coin returns at the row of vending machines near the cafeteria and used that to pay for the laundromat. I made friends with the guy who sold grilled cheese from his truck a few blocks away, and he gave me free grilled cheese when I helped him deliver sandwiches to the old lady that lived down the street and didn’t leave her apartment.

It was a precarious setup, but it got me through my first week back on my own, though the wind never stopped. It seemed like all most every night my powers spiraled out of control at least once, causing me to have to sit out on the roof, hoping I wouldn’t destroy anything. It was even worse at school, and I felt as if I were constantly sitting on a rigged bomb.

Between juggling homework and my new living situation, I spent my time trying to crack the file Marty left on the flash drive. I hadn’t heard from Detective Dunphee, and I was starting to think that they had run into a dead end. _Of course they did. Both you and Kate lied to them._

I tried using Marty’s favorite books and stories as passwords, but nothing was clicking. _calvinandhobbes. theodyssey. thelightningthief._

I called Fanisimo one night, sitting out on the rooftop, far away from the tent where I spent most of my evenings. It was a clear night, and I was exhausted from spending the day revamping the space and rigging up everything I needed to survive. “Hey, everything all right?” he asked, picking up.

“ **I just needed to hear your voice** ,” I said. “What’s up?”

He shrugged over Facetime, the image pixelated and distorted. “I’m still working on something to… uh… contain whatever you have going on. I have a prototype that should be ready by the time we have our meetup.”

“What is it?”

Fanisimo walked around his workshop and flipped his camera around to show me a device sitting on his workbench. “I’m hoping this will dampen it, or maybe stop it completely.” It was a small chip, barely visible on my small phone screen. “I based it off old HYDRA tech. They’ve used it to restrict powers before.”

“How does it work?”

Fanisimo flipped the camera back around. “Inserted right here,” he said, pointing at the back of his neck. “Like the ones we had when we were kids when we were adjusting to our new abilities.”

“Right,” I said, swallowing uncomfortably. “Is that the only option?”

“I mean, I’m going off of whatever I have,” Fanisimo said. “And it’s not a lot. If you could figure out what you were hit with…”

“It was blue,” I said. “A big blue beam. And then kaput.” I paused. “My friend Kate said the person had a HYDRA patch on their jacket. I think it was supposed to kill me. But it didn’t. It just totally fucked up my powers.”

Fanisimo frowned. “So… HYDRA weaponry. Possibly a prototype. And instead of killing you…”

“Best guess?”

“My guess is it was a weapons malfunction,” he said. “Did you have anything else on you at the time? Something could have shorted—I don’t know.”

I walk back to the tent to look through my things, embracing the space heater’s warmth. “I had my phone on me. Jacket. Backpack.”

“Yeah, that wouldn’t do it,” he said.

I flipped my backpack upside down and sorted through its contents. “I had Marty’s flash drive?”

“Nah. Never mind. It was just a thought.” We talked a little longer, mostly just talking about old memories, as we usually did, comparing our notes and trying to get a little more back. It had become a habit to share our dreams and random déjà vu, even if most of the time it amounted to nothing new and we trod over the same few memories.

“I remember snow in woods,” Fanisimo said. “Is that weird?”

“A little,” I said. “We never went outside beyond the wall at that training facility that one time.”

“I remember it,” he said again, quieter. “I remember being in the woods and being _so_ cold. And there was… like… this house. All broken down and stuff.”

“I remember there was a rabbit in one of the gardens,” I said. “I tried to catch it and they stopped me.”

“Cheerios,” added Fanisimo. “I remember eating Cheerios.”

“I remember Dr. Turner always wore high heels,” I said. “When they sent me into isolation those times, I remember the points sunk into the cushioned floor.”

“I remember acid.”

“ _Revenge is a dish best served cold,_ ” I said. “Or did they always say vengeance? I don’t remember.”

“I remember you guys. And the meds they had us on. I hated feeling like that.”

“I remember Monster. And _sumerkey_.”

“I remember that chair.”

“I remember the electricity.”

We sat in silence as we tried to make sense of it all, find some reason that we went through all of it. All of us had been tracking down old scientists and leaking their information, but I was the only one who had confronted them, and I barely had any leads to show for it. _You have to find Dr. Turner. She’ll know. And if there’s a book involved, find that too._

“Hold on,” said Fanisimo, his tone changing. “What’s that thing on the bottom of your backpack? The shiny thing. You didn’t mention that.”

I look over at the backpack next to me on my sleeping bag. “Where? I don’t see it.”

“Hold on,” said Fanisimo. “The light has to hit it right.”

I angled the backpack a little, and sure enough, I found a thin sliver of something reflective affixed to the material on the base of my backpack. Wordlessly, I gave it a tug and pulled it off. It had the texture of a thin wire and was about the width of a string. “That’s weird,” I said. “Probably got stuck to it when I had my backpack on the floor or something.”

“I don’t think so,” said Fanisimo, and when I looked back at his face, his mouth was creased into a grimace. “Can you send me a picture?”

I did so, and while I waited to respond, I studied the object in my hand, turning it over, noticing that the surface of it seemed burnt in places, and now that I looked, the space where it had been on my backpack was also singed. I started backtracking, realizing that there was so much I hadn’t told the Lab Rats about my activities in New York and—

“Hey,” said Fanisimo, returning. “How long has that been there?”

“No idea.”

“Well… uh… I think that’s a tracker.”

“What?”

“A tracker. Like the kind SHIELD might use. It could also be a bug, but I’m not sure, it’s hard to say. Have you had any contact with someone from… I don’t know… anyone who could plant it?” I remembered the day at the apartment when those agents arrived, but my backpack had been in my bedroom and no one had gone near it. _I could have been followed after the fact._

“No,” I said. “No idea.” **_Great. Perfect. Nice. Fuck this._**

“I’d bet anything that’s what caused the malfunction. Heckergal, you gotta get rid of that. This is bad.”

“I know that!” I snapped. “I know it’s bad!”

“Jeez, okay,” said Fanisimo. “I just—”

“I gotta go,” I said, and left the call. I stepped back out of the tent and the wind swirled around the rooftop in a vortex as I struggled to keep control, loose bits of gravel and debris stinging my face as I tried to calm down. It was as if the walls were slowly closing in, and I was running out of time.

_I need to find Dr. Turner._


	67. Silent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow goes after a sixth ex-Facility member, this time in person

  * **Words:** 1470
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“How did you find me?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“Don’t underestimate me.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:** [Silent Night - Myuu](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DREk9Ia6eYXk&t=YTY0NjgwZmRjZTc5NmI2M2M5MGIzZTUwZGVjZDRmMGI5YTI2YTY3MSxvc0dyR2kxYg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618873288287027200%2Fsilent&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _welcome back to the chronicles of willow wren where everything’s made up on the fly and plot doesn’t matter. or does it?_



—————————————————————————–

Time didn’t quite feel real that December. The holiday decorations felt out of place, and even the snowfalls that followed felt wrong. Maybe it was because I was alone. The fear that I thought would fade never went away, and I could hardly sleep at night, feeling like I was only moments away from being taken. Luck had gotten me this far, but any organization looking for me was far more competent than I was. I was almost certain that somewhere, someone had a file on me. Maybe they didn’t know my name or face yet, but how much longer could I hold out?

At four in the morning on a Monday that December over the holiday break, I decided to go after a sixth ex-Facility worker. Heidi Rye. As I lay awake that morning, I finally got up and decided to prepare to leak her information and find her address. Turns out, she lived fairly close to where I used to. A penthouse, nice view. I could land right on her balcony and break in that way.

_I just need answers. That’s all._

I left my backpack at my tent, along with my cellphone. I didn’t want to risk being tracked. I couldn’t stop obsessing on the wire Fanisimo and I found on my backpack and I was worried there were more. _And why haven’t they come for me yet? Or do they not know? Maybe they tracked a ton of people. Maybe it wasn’t even them._

Getting to Heidi Rye’s place only took minutes, and when I landed on the roof, the sun was just coming up. I had already leaked her information, so I was on the clock already. From the giant windows that looked out onto the city, I saw she was already awake, making coffee at her kitchen counter. I took a deep breath and sailed down, landing on the balcony just as she ducked into another room out of view. _Just stay calm._ My mask was already pulled up over the lower half of my faced, with the black face paint around my eyes and white over the rest of my face.

There was a small Christmas tree set up in the corner of the apartment, all lit up, and I felt a pang of jealousy that her life was still progressing as normal, that once again, she got away without any consequences. I had seen her role at the Facility, _program manager,_ and there was even something familiar about her, such as when I found a video of her giving a Ted Talk a few years ago. Her voice, maybe?

With a tug, the sliding door on her balcony opened, letting a gust of warm air out of the apartment. _Of course it wouldn’t be locked. Who would break in from the top floor?_ I crept on in and took a moment to explore the place, the coffee table littered with books, the television on low as the news played, the single light on above the brewing coffee machine. I continued to walk through the room, trying to take in as much as possible. Above the couch, there was a large portrait of a group of scientists in white lab coats, and I studied it for familiar faces. There, right in the middle, I saw her, and my heart stopped. Grinning at the camera was Doctor Dawn Turner.

“Oh, no way,” I breathed, just as I heard footsteps behind me.

“Don’t move.” I turned around immediately, to face Heidi Rye, who was standing in the doorway of the other room and holding a handgun. Her hands were shaking, and I noticed that the safety was still on.

“Look,” I said, holding my hands up. “I just want to ask a few questions. That’s all.”

“How did you get up here?” she asked. “ **How did you find me?** ”

“Google,” I said, through the mask, and we circled each other, me so my back was to the kitchen, and her back to the balcony. I shut my eyes and took a step towards her, preparing my first question. “Where is Subject Zero? Do you remember her?”

“No… I—”

“Where is Doctor Dawn Turner? Remember her? You guys seem to be buddies.”

“Gone…” Heidi breathed. “She’s…”

“Where?”

“I don’t know… wait how old are you? You’re just a kid.”

“ **Don’t underestimate me.** ” Maybe it was the stress of having a gun held to me, even if I was certain that Heidi didn’t know how to use it, but the air began to swirl in the apartment. The coffee stream went sideways and spilled onto the counter as Heidi took a step back, now standing in the sliding door frame. _Willow, Willow come on, calm down… don’t…_ “What about Monster? Do you remember what that was? I know the projects you worked on, surely you remember _something_.”

“Monster?” Heidi whispered. “No… I don’t…”

“This?” I asked, raising my voice, showing her the word written on my arm. _Sumerkey_. “What about this?”

She took another shaking step back and lowered the gun, placing it down on the ground and putting her hands in the air. “Look, I don’t want trouble, I don’t do that anymore…”

I continued to hold my hands out, trying to get a hold on the rapidly changing winds. “You don’t do that anymore?” I asked. “ _You don’t do that anymore?_ Must be nice… to just walk away like that. I left a year ago and one of you showed up and _killed my best friend_ just a few weeks ago. _You don’t do that anymore?_ ” I shook my head. “Do you hear yourself? How can you ruin our lives forever and just walk away and claim _you don’t do that anymore_? Someone’s still looking for us—”

“That word,” Heidi interrupted. “Let me help you. Okay? I know it.”

I lowered my hands for a moment. “You what?” I searched her face, trying to understand where she was going and meanwhile the wind continued to sweep the room, a vortex with me in the middle.

“Just… take a deep breath,” she said. “Calm your—”

“No!” I yelled, not even sure why just knowing that I didn’t want to hear anymore. She flinched and took another step back, as I held my hands out again. That moment, right there, I lost control. Before I knew what I was doing, I had directed the swirling wind at her, right out the door, knocking her back further. She teetered on her heels, grabbing at the air to regain her balance, but as she struggled against the blast, she slipped.

And fell over the edge.

I didn’t even react for a moment, instead still directing the wind forward until it ceased, and I clapped a hand over my mouth. “No… no no no,” I said, running for the open door and peering over the edge.

She was still falling. In fact, I may have been able to save her.

But instead, I watched her fall further, finally hitting the sidewalk far below. The TV was still playing in the background. The coffee still brewing. _Oh my God. What did I do? Oh, God._

My watch beeped and I realized the police would be arriving to arrest her at any moment. I was out of time. I glanced around her apartment, my heart pounding, looking to see if there was anything I could take that would be helpful… anything. _I need to take something out of this. Oh my God, you just killed someone. Oh my God._

I reached to search through the books on the coffee table, and then made a move for the picture above the couch, but then paused.

 _No. Wait. Think. She fell. Could have been an accident. We need to make this look like an accident. Or something else._ I could hardly believe myself as I picked up the fallen gun from the balcony and stuffed it inside my jacket, the cold metal feeling familiar in my hands. I knew I should feel worse about what I had done, horrified, but besides the initial shock, I didn’t feel much of anything. _What’s wrong with me?_

I walked back into the apartment and stared at the picture above the couch. I had nothing to take a picture of Doctor Turner with, something to identify her beyond my hazy memories since I left my phone back at base, and I studied the photo one last time, trying to take every detail in.

Then, I ran for it, nearly splitting the sky in two as I flew back to my base, scared, so scared that I had lost control again, and yet… relieved in a way. She was gone. For good. She wouldn’t hurt anyone else.

_Maybe you did everyone a favor._

_That was for Marty._


	68. Gone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow speaks with the other Lab Rats about their past and future

  * **Words:** 2012
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Gooblin, Pip, Pingu, Burr, Spark, Danny, Manny, Dew, Fanisimo, France, Sabbath
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“are you finishing that or…?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“You’re going to get someone hurt.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Gone - M83](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dg9SpmgFEvKw&t=Yzg4M2I5ZjE5YTg0YjM4ZmM2YzFlNTI3YWQ5YjljZmE4Zjg1YTU0OSxBWWhwTmNsUA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618950872458739712%2Fgone&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _the more you know_



—————————————————————————–

The Lab Rats and I met at Gooblin’s fire tower on Christmas Eve. We set up sleeping bags in the tower and lit a bonfire down below. It should have felt like a party, being together for the first time since the summer, but it didn’t. It was somber instead.

On the heels of Marty’s death, the boys were sure that they were being trailed in Vegas, and Sabbath had botched a leak, accidentally forgetting to strip one of the files of metadata. It was a rough week and so we sat around the bonfire, staring down the end of our first year of freedom.

“Sometimes,” Pip said, slowly. “I think we should just turn ourselves in.” I shot a look at him.

“Why?” Burr asked. “Did you see something?”

“No,” said Pip, gazing into the fire. “I mean, not specifically. But when I do get those flashes of the future, I just see…” He looked at me and I frowned. “I just see… those planes that SHIELD used to have. It’s really dark. Surrounded. Loud. Maybe we should turn ourselves in before things get bad.”

“I’m not turning myself in,” said Pingu, poking the embers with a stick. “I hardly even use my powers. _I’m_ not a threat.”

_Except for D.C._

“Yeah, and neither is magic tricks,” said Manny, looking at Danny and France. “Pip, you know what we do. How can you say that’s dangerous?”

“I’m not _saying_ it’s dangerous,” Pip said. “I’m saying that we’re perceived as threats.”

“Not me either,” said Sabbath, and Spark nodded her head in agreement. “Most of us are just trying to get our lives together. Even Dew is, which… I’m honestly kind of surprised.”

Dew laughed. “Well, superbrains aren’t exactly obvious. And the mirror thing isn’t either.”

“So, what?” I asked. “Who are you talking about?” I asked Pip. “Me? Fanisimo building things for us? Burr’s out there robbing banks in Europe.”

“I’m not violent,” Burr shot back. “It’s all behind the scenes.”

“So what, I build things?” said Fanisimo. “As long as I don’t open up a nether portal, I think we’re okay.”

That left me, and I felt their stares. “You want me to turn myself in,” I said. “That’s me you’re seeing in your vision.”

“I didn’t say that,” Pip mumbled.

“You implied it.”

“What’s going on in New York?” Danny asked. “I see the news, and maybe to outsiders it’s not suspicious, but to us? What are you doing? Every time I check in it’s like a new disaster or unsolved crime or—”

“I’m fine!” I said.

“ **You’re going to get someone hurt** ,” Sabbath said. “Or get yourself hurt.”

I ignored her and played with Marty’s flash drive in my hands. I had put it on a chain so I could wear it around my neck and the metal was cold between my fingers. Pip cleared his throat and asked Pingu about how school and home was, and the conversation shifted away from me. I grabbed my laptop from my backpack and plugged the flash drive in, trying key after key on WinRAR, nothing working. The file stayed zipped.

France and Pip got into a debate about whether France could use his powers to heal to resurrect someone who had died, as he had gotten some strange blood or healing abilities from the Blue Lab.

“You can't resurrect someone,” France said. “It’s not possible. You can’t heal death.”

“But you haven’t tried,” Pip said. “Maybe you just need to _try_.”

“Wanna volunteer?”

The others laughed and it reminded me of something Marty had once told me. “Hey, Sabbath,” I said. She was sitting next to me. “You know the musical Cats?” I knew she was obsessed with musical theater, and if anyone appreciated the factoid, she would.

“What about it?”

“Well, if you trace the events from its production, it started with a German necromancer from the 1400s. So some guy tried to raise the dead in medieval times and we ended up with a musical about cats.”

“That can’t be real,” said Sabbath, pulling out her phone and opening the internet browser.

“It is,” I said, trying a few more book titles as keys on Marty’s file. On the other side of the fire, Spark and Gooblin stabbed sticks through marshmallows and began roasting them, as Spark joked about singing Christmas carols and Danny nudged Spark, pointing at a burnt marshmallow. “ **Are you finishing that or…”**

“Wait…” Sabbath started. “John Faustus?”

“Yeah, I think,” I said. “Neat, right?”

“That was the name of the…” Sabbath started, and the rest of the circle got quiet as she typed something else into her phone.

“Name of…?”

“ _Doctor Faustus, deal with the devil…_ Faustus,” said Sabbath. “I remember now. That’s what they called it. At the Facility. With the words, that’s what they called it. Holy shit, that’s what it was. Do you guys remember? They used to use it when we started to… I don’t know… get out of line? They always said the same phrase, but I remember… there’s so much there…”

It was as if a ding went off in my head. _Look up Doctor Faustus when you get a chance; it’s a wild read._ I slowly typed _doctorfaustus_ into the box, and suddenly the dialogue box cleared, and the folder opened up.

“Guys, guys, I got it,” I said in disbelief. “I got into the files Marty left me. The password was Doctor Faustus. Why is that…” The other Lab Rats on the other side of the circle got up and came around the fire to stand around me as I clicked to open the folder and extract the hidden files. “Marty was on to something,” I whispered. “Marty knew something…”

I opened the folder and the screen filled with a ton of subfolders. _articles. hydra wikileaks. shield wikileaks. social media. scam stuff. willow. patterns._

I first clicked on _scam stuff,_ my hands shaking, and when I opened up the folder, I wasn’t prepared for what I saw. There were archived emails, text files, screenshots of a conversation Marty had with someone at a data recovery center. The words blackmail crossed the screen. A data dump of archived HYDRA documents.

_How the hell did Marty get his hands on this?_

“What the fuck?” France asked. “What was he doing?”

I opened his _hydra wikileaks_ folder and found pages and pages of documents from the 2014 leak, all organized and collected, exploring every bit of data that was released. And then _patterns._ There was a single video, and I recognized the file name from Marty’s blackmail at the data recovery center. He had stolen it, stolen it straight from HYDRA. Marty did that. Somehow, that anxious, goofy, weirdo kid did that. _He did that for us. And paid the price._

“Click on it,” Dew said.

“I don’t know…” I started.

“Click on it,” Manny interrupted. “We have to watch. We have to know.”

It was a stream of a video conference, and at the center of it was Doctor Dawn Turner, sitting on a desk with a stack of papers next to her. The video was titled _report_5232014_turner._ She began talking and her voice sent chill straight through my heart, and some of the other Lab Rats instinctively stepped back from the screen or avoided looking altogether. The words seemed to bleed together as she discussed _progress_ and _assignments_ and _Fausta. Monster._ It was so cold, so clinical, but we started to recognize our subject numbers. _Subject 10. That was me. October._

“This is about us,” Pip murmured, and we shushed him.

_Resets. The Monster Book. Triggers. Compliance._

The video ended and I saw our reflections on the black screen. My heart pounding, I opened up _articles._ The folder contained screenshots of news stories, some pulled straight from old newspapers. I clicked through them using the right arrow key, but I hadn’t made the connection, not yet.

“These are all really old,” Burr said. “Look, that one’s from 2008.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” I said. “These are all… deaths? Obituaries? But not even of anyone important.” I continued to sort through, but I felt the pit in my stomach deepen. “This is a family in Russia. Middle of nowhere. Look at that place.”

“That’s the house from…” Fanisimo started and we turned to look at him. “I remember that house. Those woods. The cold.”

“No, this can’t…” I started. “This isn’t right. You can’t remember it. We never left the Facility.”

The faces continued to pop up on the screen and even though I knew I shouldn’t, I wasn’t supposed to, I remembered. Every single one. I clicked faster and more articles continued to come up, more unnatural deaths, more…

“Go back to the video,” Burr said. “Go back.”

We watched it again, listening closely, until Pingu interrupted with an “oh my God.”

_The Monster Book. October, shh. It’s time to play Monster. Sumerkey. Nothingness. The chair. The electricity. October, are you ready to comply?_

“This isn’t real,” I said. “It can’t be,” and my breaths were shallow and heavy like I had just run a marathon. “We didn’t do this. We couldn’t have. We’d…”

“Remember,” Fanisimo finished.

“They weren’t training us all those years at the Facility,” Dew whispered. “We were already working the whole time. We were… you know…”

“Killing,” I said. “ _That’s_ what Monster was. _Sumerkey_ was the start of a series, but of course I wouldn’t remember beyond that. We’d… change somehow. Complete the assignment. Return back to the Facility. There would be a reset. And over, and over, and over.”

“How many times,” Sabbath asked, and I turned to look at her, seeing tears reflecting the bonfire’s light. “How many times were we reset? What did we do?”

“That’s why I wrote the word,” I said, thinking out loud, speaking slowly as I put it back together. “ _Sumerkey,_ on my arm. That was the last thing I remembered every time. And I realized that if I wrote it on my arm, I could pull myself out. Remember who I was before that. Or… at least… fight it. _That’s_ why.”

The fire crackled and hissed as we played the video again, and again, as I tried to absorb Marty’s last gift to all of us. _This is why they came for him, took his devices. He must have left digital fingerprints. Of course. He didn’t understand what he was dealing with. And that’s why he hid the drive._

_Did he know? Did he know they were coming for him?_

I looked at the dates on the drive. _Marty knew. He knew all of this about you. And he still…_ I wanted to cry, but instead I swallowed the lump in my throat, looking into the fire as if it could evaporate the tears out of my eyes. _Marty, why did you have to go looking? Why did you have to do this?_

_We were always the bad guys. We weren’t innocent in all this. That family…_

“I can’t believe that…” Pip started, but he couldn’t finish the sentence, choking up over his own words.

“Why?” Pingu asked. “Why did they have to? 2008—we were seven. _Seven years old._ ”

“I’m done with this shit,” Sabbath said, walking away from the fire. “I’m done. I didn’t want to know all this.”

“Fuck this,” said Danny. “I’m done, too. Why…”

The tears were contagious in our gathering and as we silently wept that Christmas Eve, we remembered. Remembered what we had done, everything we were supposed to forget. It came in flashes, in jolts of electricity, and the same series of words over and over and over. The fear when I saw Doctor Turner come in with the Monster Book. I remembered that now. Not being able to stop it. Even if the reset made us forget, that little girl still remembered every time the door opened, and the book was set down on the table.

_And Marty knew. Marty knew._

_They wanted us to be killers? I’ll show them a killer._


	69. When We Come

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow creates a new game plan, one that her siblings oppose

  * **Words:** 1298
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Father Jake, Gooblin, Pip, Pingu, Burr, Spark, Danny, Manny, Dew, Fanisimo, France, Sabbath
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“have you lost your mind?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“I’m a monster.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** December 2015
  * **Song:**[Little Drummer Boy - Low](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DAi-5tDAuYWU&t=Mzc0MmM2OWI0MTdkNTAxMDg4NTk0NzQ4NjQ4YWY0NTIzOWFmMDAzZSxTcm1jNW5UYg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618966408949383168%2Fwhen-we-come&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _is my “raised catholic” showing? oop thanks fam_



—————————————————————————–

I left that same night, Christmas Eve. The bombshell of a discovery on the flash drive was enough to get me running again, and now, I felt like I couldn’t stop. I had never felt this angry before. This _robbed_. _My time as a kid… gone. I’m never getting that back. Those weren’t even assassinations… those were just murders. That family… they were innocent. They made us do that and we didn’t even fight back, we didn’t even try to stop them. All for whatever fucked up 4-D chess game they were trying to play._

I packed my bags and my laptop, zipping my coat shut for the freezing flight back. I could feel the wind gathering at my hands again—I was close to losing it.

“Are you seriously leaving now?” Pip asked. “Right now? After all…”

“Yup,” I said. “The only thing that’s going to make me feel better is a few more old Facility agents down. I’m going.”

“We should stop that plan,” Danny said. “I think we should put a pause on the Rat Revolution.”

“Are you kidding?” I asked. “They’re still out there, possibly hurting other people, other experiments. I know we’re not the only ones. You’re going to sit there and say we should stop?”

“It’s not safe,” Manny, said, agreeing with his twin. “We have to look out for ourselves.” He sighed. “I don’t want to hurt anyone else. I just… I need time.”

“Pingu,” I said, turning to her, the friend that always seemed onboard with my schemes. “Can you talk some sense into these guys?”

The look she gave me nearly made me lose it then and there. “I can’t,” she whispered. “I’m done trying to save the world. I’m so tired. This isn’t the way to do it.” Pingu looked up at the sky, then back at the sparks leaping from the fire. “The best thing we can do is live our lives as normally as possible. Put all this behind us. Don’t be what they made us.”

“Whatever, I’m going,” I said, again. “See you on the front-page tomorrow.”

“ **Are you out of your mind?** ” France said.

“We are what we are,” I said. “They gave us these gifts and they’re going to regret it.”

“No,” Pip said firmly. “This isn’t us.”

“ **I’m a monster** ,” I said. “You’re a monster. That’s what we are. That’s what they made us to be. You saw the files just like me. You saw what we did. So, instead of being useless and tapping out, it’s time to balance the scales.” I snapped my fingers, trying to remember the phrase. “It’s like in the Bible,” I said. “Penance.”

“I’m not doing this with you,” said Burr. “I love you, but I’m not doing this. Pingu’s right.”

I stared at the Lab Rats in disbelief, even though some part of me always knew this was coming. Even back at the Facility I had been the one with a grudge, the one who refused to give up on a fight. It’s what got me put in isolation so often. It’s the reason I remember being put in that chair so often. _But I didn’t fight back on Monster. And now I have to._

“Well, I’m leaving. See you guys.” I started walking towards the open clearing beyond the tower, looking for a place to take off and start on back to my base. It was around nine at night, still early. _I bet I could get another two agents out by tomorrow._ There were footsteps in the grass behind me, someone running, and when I turned, I saw Fanisimo jogging after me.

“Wait, Heckergal, wait.”

“Are you coming?”

He cast his eyes down and shook his hand, his mouth turned downward. “No. But I have the chip for you. To inhibit your powers. Let me at least insert it before you go.” He held it out and I watched as the metal glinted in the moonlit.

“No,” I said quickly. “I changed my mind. I don’t need it.”

“Look, you really should…”

“No!” I said again. “I’m fine. I’ve got it under control.”

Fanisimo sighed and dug into his backpack. “Then at least take these.” He passed me a pair of goggles, metallic and built to last, well-made. “It’s for when you’re flying. You know, for the wind. I know you used to use all sorts of things. These are better, and there’s a bunch of screen functions on these too. Super useful.”

I took them from Fanisimo and tucked them over my head as I took a breath. “Thanks, dude.”

He ran a hand through his black hair and scratched under his nose as he looked down at the ground. “Yeah. You know we’re always here for you. Stay safe?”

“I’ll be safe,” I said, but as I took off, I had a feeling it would be a long time before we met again.

I flew back to New York City in record time, the goggles allowing me to go faster than ever without my eyes completely drying out or being sealed shut by the wind, and I played around with the display as I shot across the sky, the wind like a cannon around me. I looked up two more agents from my files. Oliver and Lisa Bassi. Married, met on the job, based on their shared Facebook account. Home for the holidays. _Merry fucking Christmas._

I had too much nervous energy that night when I got in, around midnight, and instead of sleeping, I stood in the back of Father Jake’s midnight mass at St. Giles. I hadn’t been in a while, but if I was going to do what I planned to do, I should at least make an appearance. I knew I was spiraling, on a collision course to disaster, but I couldn’t stop myself. I was going to find Doctor Turner. Destroy the Monster Book. Those were my only objectives. What happened after didn’t matter.

_HYDRA made a mistake. I have nothing left to lose now._

In the back of the candlelit mass, I said a prayer, even followed along in the second-hand bible that Father Jake had given me ages ago. _This is what they wanted. This is what they’ll get._ After the service, I found Father Jake back at the altar, long after everyone else had left. He put out the remaining candles and nearly didn’t see me in the deepening gloom of the church.

“Willow?” he asked. “You’re still here? Santa’s not going to come if you’re still up.” He chuckled a little at his own joke, but then sobered up. “Is everything okay? I know you’ve had a rough few weeks.”

“I don’t think Santa’s coming for me this year,” I said, reflecting back on his previous statement. “I guess… I just wanted to… I don’t know. I have a lot of things I regret and I don’t know what to do, or if was even my fault. I… found out about it. Tonight.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No, not really,” I sighed. “Um… when it comes to penance, you’ve mentioned it before, what do I have to do? I mean, what do you usually tell people to do?”

“Do you want to do a confession?”

“Not really.”

The stained glass above the altar seemed to glow as the moonlight poured in. “Well, it comes down to serving others. What can you do to help others? Will that make it right?”

Oliver and Lisa Bassi were dead by seven the next morning. Two bullets from Heidi Rye’s gun. Two more HYDRA agents gone. By eight, I was visiting the old lady to deliver her daily grilled cheese sandwich and wish her a Merry Christmas so that she would not be alone.


	70. Still Awake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow returns to school after winter break

  * **Words:** 1100
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Ethan Kim
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“alright, i’ll leave you alone.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“Don’t give me that look.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** January 2016
  * **Song:**[Rejoice - Julien Baker](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DbEGHesLzBAc&t=ZWMzZDRiZDRjNDg5YWI2ZmUzMTBhMTI3MjE0MWQ4ODZkZjcxOWRhMSxWRDJwb0JKcg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619032803253911552%2Fstill-awake&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _it’s mentul illnuss innit, luv?_



—————————————————————————–

I still felt half-asleep when we returned to school after winter break. I hadn’t talked to Kate the whole break, and Peter and Ned hadn’t heard from her either. The three of us met, as usual, in the lobby of MSST, but I just felt so _disconnected_ , as Peter and Ned discussed their break and I nodded along. I had been to Peter’s a few times, just for movie nights with him and Ned, but it didn’t feel the same. They asked me what happened with Kate, and I didn’t have a good answer.

_How did I fuck all this up so badly?_

I didn’t feel like the same person anymore. After the revelation Marty’s USB drive brought, I wasn’t even sure who I was anymore. _Who is Willow? Who was October?_

I got to homeroom and slid into my seat, putting my head down on the desk, praying the school day would end quickly so I could go back to base, maybe sleep a little, and pick another HYDRA agent. _I’m so bored. I’m—_

“Hey,” someone said, and I looked up to see Ethan Kim settling into the desk next to me. “How was your break?”

I sat up and sighed. “Uh… below average?”

He looked like he wanted to ask more, but he stared down at his notebook, pushing his pencil tip into the binder holes. “Oh. Sorry to hear that. Did you do anything fun?” When he looked back at me, I read the concern in his eyes, the way he actually _cared_ what I said, and it made me feel worse.

“ **Don’t give me that look,** ” I said, putting my head back down.

“Oh… okay… sorry? What look?” Ethan stuttered, and when I didn’t answer, he went back to poking his notebook with his pencil. “ **Alright, I’ll leave you alone**.”

 _God, what’s wrong with me?_ Every time I shut my eyes, it was a new image. Marty dead in the apartment. The Russian family. Heidi Rye falling over the balcony. That couple I killed Christmas morning and felt _nothing_ when it happened. _I should have felt something. Why can’t I feel anything? I’m so tired. I’m so, so tired._

I titled my head in my arms and glanced back up at Ethan. “Sorry. How was your break?”

He seemed surprised and smiled a little. “Oh. It was all right. I went skiing with my parents, so that was fun. Celebrated Christmas with my grandparents in Connecticut.”

“Sounds nice,” I said, clenching my fists under my crossed arms. “Um… do you have any siblings?”

“No,” he said. “Just me.”

“Right on.”

“You?”

I read the clock at the front of the room. Still a few minutes before class started. “I have eleven. Well… maybe twelve.” _Let’s see what he says to that._

“Wait, _what?_ ” Ethan asked, his voice barely above a whisper in the homeroom chatter. “Do they all live at that apartment? Like…”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “We all live in different places.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“That still must be cool though,” Ethan said. “It’s like a whole bunch of people who are forced to be friends with you.”

I almost laughed. “Yeah. Exactly.” For some reason, I was moments away from exploding again, my spine itself feeling like there was a current flowing through it, and my hands filled with pins and static. “Can you make sure I get marked present?” I asked. “I need to go to the bathroom.”

I practically ran down the hall, towards the auditorium, somewhere empty and quiet. Papers fluttered on bulletin boards, and just as I shut the auditorium door behind me, the wind shot out, ripping through the auditorium, shaking the seats, my hair twisting in the vortex. The light rig rattled against the beams and I sat down in the aisle, trying to get it to stop, somehow get control back.

Just as the wind began to settle, I hear someone approaching the auditorium doors and I stood up quickly. When the door opened, the air was still, and I saw Principal Morita standing in the hallway. “What are you doing here?”

“Um…”

“My office, please.”

And that’s how I spent my first afternoon after winter break in detention, watching one of those fucking Captain America videos on the roll-in television, a video I was no stranger to. “So, you got detention. You screwed up.” I mouthed along with the words as I scratched my name into the desk and the video droned on and Captain America’s smug face stared out of the grainy screen. “ _You know what you did was wrong, but the question is: how are you going to make things right? Maybe you were trying to be cool._ ”

_How many of these did they make this guy make? Does he seriously enjoy making them?_

I thought back to Ethan in homeroom this morning and felt bad all over again for blowing him off. He reached out to me a lot, and back before everything happened, I used to say hi to him every morning before class. _But, c’mon. How am I going to make things right? I don’t know, create hurricane-force winds in my homeroom instead? Would that work? What does Principal Morita expect me to do? Of course, he doesn’t know and he’ll never know, but still. What the hell am I supposed to do?_

 _“But take it from a guy who’s been frozen for sixty-five years, the only way to really be cool is to follow the rules. We all know what’s right and we all know what’s wrong._ ”

I turned back to scratching my name in the desk, before realizing that I would get in trouble for vandalism and started crossing my name out instead, scratching a deep gorge across the letters, dragging my pencil back and forth across the desk. The teacher didn’t seem to care if we did homework or not, as long as we weren’t on our phones, and even though I could use the homework time, I just sat there, continuing to scratch at the desk.

_“Next time those turkeys try to convince you of something you know is wrong, just think to yourself what would Captain America do?”_

I think about Marty. _Why did he feel the need to go digging on his own? Why didn’t he tell me?_ I knew why, though. Marty was stubborn, he liked his secrets almost as much as I did. He liked the investigation, the hunt, that’s why he loved scamming people online so much. _But why did it have to be Marty? If he had told me… I could have warned him. I could have stopped this._ And even with Peter and Ned still here, nothing was the same without Kate or Marty.


	71. Making My Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow takes out a ninth ex-Facility member and celebrates afterward to forget

  * **Words:** 701
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Nedward and Boxer Joe
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“nothing can hurt me now.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“bro… that’s so… not cool…”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** January 2016
  * **Song:**[Paper Planes - MIA](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DF3CIbk3At_8&t=NTc0N2M3NmMyYjZjMWZhYjc4ZmQ4OTNlYjA4NWUxZmZkM2I5MGY2NyxYRmg5YmdoVA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619219473422024704%2Fmaking-my-name&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _thank you again to everyone who’s been leaving comments and kudos!!!!! <3_



—————————————————————————–

Daniel Royer. He was the ninth ex-Facility member I took out. Or was it the tenth? I was losing count. He lived in a farmhouse in upstate New York. We fought. He got knocked out. Someone left the gas on his stove. The wind blew the wrong way. His house burned.

I decided to celebrate back at the base since I didn’t know how else I should feel. Mostly tired. Annoyed, at first. Daniel wasn’t able to give me anything useful.

On the roof, outside my tent, bundled up in my winter coat, I cranked the heater and opened up the flaps. Nedward and Boxer Joe seemed especially happy to see me, mostly because I brought snacks back from Daniel Royer’s house before it burned down. Music cranked and my cheap string lights flashing, I danced around the roof, sipping at what I think was rum, also from the house. It wasn’t very good, but it made me feel cool.

My phone buzzed and I saw texts from Peter and Ned, asking if I had done the homework for Spanish yet. I sighed and muted the conversation, not wanting to think about school. When I first moved to this rooftop, I thought of it was temporary, and then I thought of this mission to seek out HYDRA agents as only temporary. I had told myself that I would reconnect with my friends “when it was all over,” that I would get my grades up “when this is all over,” that I would clean up the trail of destruction I was leaving behind “when this is all over.” But as the weeks stretched into months, it started to feel normal. Go to school. Come home. Sleep. Work on my mission. Party with the rats. Go to school and repeat. Add a few detentions here and there, as well as some marathon homework sessions, and that was what my life had become.

“ **Nothing can hurt me now!** ” I exclaimed to Nedward and Boxer Joe that night, my eyes still glowing with images from the fire. “Look at me! Absolutely unstoppable!” It didn’t matter that the wind whipped around me or that my hands would not stop shaking, or that horrible images wouldn’t stop running through my head uninvited. It didn’t matter. I was winning. Whatever this was, I was winning.

My one-person dance party was interrupted as I saw Nedward chewing through the bag of carrots I had placed down to open for them. “ **Bro… that’s so… not cool…** ” I pulled the bag from his little hands and opened it up for him. “See?” I said. “Isn’t that easier?”

I sat down next to them and opened up my laptop, going back through Marty’s USB drive for what felt like the hundredth time. I had opened the _willow_ folder, but it was fairly sparse, only containing a list of cities. _Was he trying to figure out which city I was born in?_

I had no clue myself, only vague memories from when I was living with my adoptive dads. It was near mountains, cold. The only time I left the fire station was when they took me skiing in the winter. We’d go at night, driving out in the late afternoon and arriving at sunset. The bulky snowsuit hid any chance of the wings being seen. _I forgot how much I liked skiing_. Back then, it was the closest I’d get to flying. I remember changing into pajamas on the ride home, late at night, and falling asleep to the same radio station. _I used to be really happy. Before HYDRA, I was really happy._

The Lab Rats and I had run through all the possibilities for how we ended up mutants in the first place, even before Project Rebirth got off the ground or HYDRA tracked us down and experimented on us. We were okay not having answers for that. What always haunted me was the why. _Why us? I could have been content living in the firehouse, skiing at night, watching people walk by on the street below, understanding that I could never be a part of that world, and being okay with it. Why did it have to be us?_


	72. Air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ethan tries to reach out to Willow at school

  * **Words:** 671
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Ethan Kim, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“cross that. don’t answer that.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“you know who to call.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** January 2015
  * **Song:** [Creve Coeur - Ethan Jewell](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DB4nepi68FGk&t=MWExYzE5YjgzYzhhZmI3MWE2YTFkZjg1ZGRhM2QwMWZlMmI5NmMzZSxaY0Q4bTR4Yw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619480618410147840%2Fair&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _aldkjflksjdf the fact that they’re both named Ethan_



—————————————————————————–

I was just so tired, but I couldn’t stop now. I still hadn’t been able to cry, and now I was afraid that I’d never be able to. I think the others, Peter and Ned and Jessica, maybe know that something is going on, but I think they think I’m still grieving or trying to process what happened (I don’t need to process what happened). _It’s been more than a month._

“ **You know who to call** ,” Peter told me one morning as we depart for class. “If you need anything.”

“Of course,” I said, wondering why I was still here, in school, still pretending like everything was normal and fine. “I’ll see you at lunch.”

“See ya!” Ned said, and I faked a smile.

I walked to homeroom, half-watching the student news, and remembering the math quiz I was supposed to have that afternoon. It had snowed the night before and the hallway was filled with wet puddles and brown slush as boots and shoes squeaked across the linoleum.

“Hi,” I said to Ethan as I sat down, pulling out my books to place on my desk and hiding my phone behind the stack.

“Hey. What’s up?” he said.

“Nothing,” I sighed. “Another day in paradise.” _How am I supposed to act like things are normal? Nothing was ever normal for me, and now that I know they wired my brain that way that—_

“Hahaha ok…. are you all right?” Ethan asked. “I mean, like…you look…” His face went red as he struggled for the right words.

“I’m just really tired. Exhausted.” I looked at my reflection in my phone screen. “Why, do I look… **never mind don’t answer that**.”

“Bad night’s sleep?”

“Something like that.” _I got into another random fight last night. Something stupid, something I shouldn’t have even been involved in, but I couldn’t help it. I’m just so angry all the time._

“You should try melatonin, that’s what I use.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” No matter what I did, it seemed like things just kept getting worse, and I was slowly falling into a hole that would be harder and harder to dig my way out of when I hit rock bottom. _I’m supposed to feel better with time, but the more time goes on, the worse I feel and the more I learn about myself. I found out who I am, and I hate her. What do I do with that?_ “Do you ever feel like whatever decision you make is the wrong one?” I asked Ethan.

He thought for a moment. “I mean, I guess sometimes. Like sometimes we have broadcasts on the student news that just completely wrong and no matter what I do it just gets worse and worse.”

“Yeah.”

“If you ever want to talk, I’m here.”

“I’m good.” _Marty was the first person I even came close to allowing in like that, and we saw how that turned out. His dad was right._

I sat with the boys at lunch, went to decathlon after school, and then Jessica’s. I wondered what would happen if I just turned myself in as Pip said. _I can’t do that. I need to find the book first. That needs to be destroyed. And Dr. Dawn Turner needs to be brought to justice._

When I fell asleep that night, staring at the blue fabric of the tent roof, and listening to the hum of the space heater, I wondered how it all could have fallen apart so fast. _How did I lose everything so quickly?_ I wondered who killed Marty, who specifically pulled the trigger. The wind had slowed down in the past week—the more numb I got, the less the air swirled outside the tent. I wondered if Marty was scared when they killed him—if he knew what was coming or if it all happened before he could blink. I silently thanked him again for the USB and tried to thank the friends who were still around, even as that number slowly dwindled.


	73. Keep It Simple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow takes out a tenth ex-Facility member at a club

  * **Words:** 648
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“fuck’s sake, what’s your problem?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“this isn’t what i wanted.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** January 2016
  * **Song:**[The Hills - The Weeknd](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DGfiJowcJiVw&t=NTRhYmM5ZTk3NTcxM2Y3ZjEzNGNmZTEwNTNkYzBkOTdiZDFjNWU5Yix3Rm4zQXc5Rg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619490475048665088%2Fkeep-it-simple&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _thank you again to everyone who’s been reading lately!!!_



—————————————————————————–

Jean-Marie Pelle was the next ex-Facility worker and HYDRA agent. On a Friday night, I tracked him to a sketchy lounge in a renovated warehouse basement. He was more careful than most, and I knew that getting him here, in public, would be far easier than trying to confront him at his home.

This time, I had a knife.

It was easy to sneak in by just landing on the roof and taking the stairs down. It was a freezing cold night, so much so that my cheeks stung in the wind as I flew over. Snow drifted down lightly and I thought back again to the mountains that my dads used to take me skiing on, and the sugar waffles we’d eat afterward. I wondered what they were doing tonight, if they were still together. _They could get married now if they were._

I got down to the basement right around eleven that night and hoped that Jean-Marie would still be there after I followed his Uber more than an hour ago. The basement was crowded and hazy, with fog covering the dance floor and the music rattling my skull. I put on my headphones just to cancel some of the noise out. Everyone else at the club was in ridiculous get up, and my mask and face paint once again helped obscure both my identity and my age. I stepped around the other people and scanned the faces of each person drinking and swaying to the music. Jean-Marie was young, fresh out of college when he started working at the Facility as a lab technician. I spotted a tangle of blond hair, tied up into a bun and when the man turned, I saw the face of a slightly pudgier, older Jean-Marie.

_I can’t do this right here. People will see. If he’s here, there’s a good chance there are other HYDRA agents here._

So, I waited. Sat back on the wall of the club, watched the man move around the floor, talking to friends and laughing. Around midnight, I watched as he left his friends and walked off the dance floor, heading towards the bathrooms. I followed him, and after waiting a moment, I followed him in, locking the bathroom door behind me. He was just finishing up, not washing his hands, but fixing his hair in the mirror. I stood by the door and then slowly walked over, grabbing for the knife hidden under my jacket. _It will take seconds. Just do it._

He must have seen me staring because he turned suddenly. “ **Fuck’s sake, what’s your problem?** ”

I made a move for him, and within seconds, it was over. Blood bubbled from his throat and I stood over him, motionless, watching as he tried to suck in a last breath. _Just like that. It’s over._ My heartbeat hadn’t even changed. I washed my hands in the sink and washed the knife off as well as Jean-Marie continued to wheeze. I studied my reflection and the dark circles of face paint around my eyes. _Is this what they wanted? Is this what they were hoping for?_

I realized that in all my rush to get it done, I hadn’t even asked him about Dr. Turner, or about Zero. _Wasn’t that the point of this all?_

_I guess not anymore._

I left the club quickly, going back the same way I went in, changing out of my bloodied clothes and discarding them in a garbage fire under a bridge nearby. It should’ve been uncomfortable how easy it was. **_This isn’t what I wanted_** _. I wanted nothing more than to put this behind me. But they started this when they came for Marty. I can hardly control my powers if I let myself feel anything else. And I don’t think that’s ever going to go away. I think I’m always going to be like this now._


	74. Ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow finds out who Peter is

  * **Words:** 1668
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“I didn’t know you could do that.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“No one can know about this.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:**[Beautiful Ghosts - Taylor Swift](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DtrIjpVH8h88&t=OTAxY2QzMTY0ZTY1MmE1ZTY0ODg5ODM1ZTg1ODJjZmE1MWRjZTZiMSxNckNkTEdWZw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619515256531763200%2Fghosts&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _this is going to be the last update for a bit! i’m working on the next arc and need to write it all before I start posting chapters to make sure the plot all works :) in the meantime, comment predictions or something? would love to know thots/thoughts. also asjdfhalsjdfh the code here is based on one my friends and I used back in the hackr days it was so stupid but also like… iconic_



—————————————————————————–

I almost didn’t see him, that night in February as I soared high above the city, letting steam off. Someone was sitting on top of a building under construction, as they stared down at the street below. Red and blue sweatshirt. It baffled me because there was no way _anyone_ should be able to get up there, and they didn’t look like a city worker. _Plus, working construction alone at this time of night?_

I descended just a little and wondered if I should put a mask on or just improvise. _No mask. Whatever they’re doing up there, it’s something. Which means they won’t snitch._ I landed on the other side of the roof, out of view, and tried to think of what to do next. Wings in. Close my fists. Easy steps.

“Hey?” Something nearly hit me, and I ducked just in time just as a ball of _something_ splatted on the radiator behind me.

The voice took me by surprise, and I jumped, stumbling back against the HVAC units on the roof. “Jesus, dude,” I said. “I just wanted to know how you got up here. You scared me.”

“Willow?”

 _Oh, fuck._ I recognized the voice, and the figure pulled off the homemade mask he was wearing. “ _Peter?_ ” I asked. “What are you doing here? I- **I didn’t know you could do that.** ”

“What… what… what are _you_ doing here?” His voice got higher as he spoke, struggling to piece together the question.

“How did you even know someone was here? And what are you wearing?”

He patted his outfit self consciously and tucked his mask into his pocket. “Um. It’s a suit.”

“It’s a _hoodie_.” We stared at each other in silence for a moment, both of us without words. As the moon came out from behind a cloud, I noticed he had blood on his face. “What happened, man?”

“Um… I… tripped? I tripped.”

“I already used that excuse last month,” I said quietly, my mind racing. “Okay. **No one can know about this** —”

“Don’t tell anyone about this,” Peter pleaded at the same time. “Please. Not even Ned.”

I drew a shaky breath and sat down on the roof. The air stirred unnaturally, and I clenched my fists, even more, trying to steady myself as I hugged my knees into my chest. “Peter,” I said, staring at the ground. “Uh… there’s a lot I haven’t told you.”

He sat down next to me, leaning against a beam. “Me too.”

Neither of us wanted to talk first—I didn’t even know where to start, or how to start. _How much do I say? How do I explain all this? Do I let him go first? Maybe he should go first. Just so I know—_

“Um… remember a few months ago when I texted you and asked if we could hang really late that one night?” Peter started, jumping into it. “Yeah. That was when that started. I think the bite I got… changed me somehow.”

“You sure it’s not just puberty?” I asked, trying to make a joke, even though it sounded _so_ stupid as soon as it left my mouth.

He laughed nervously. “Uh… I’m sure. I-I started sticking to the walls and ceiling,” he said. “Um… and I got stronger? Do things I was never able to do before. And it’s like my senses are dialed to a ten now, all the time.”

 _I can relate to that._ “All from the bite?” I asked. “So, is that how you got up here? Wait, what was that stuff—"

“Web fluid,” he said. “I made it myself.” He rolled up his sleeve and showed me a device that extended onto his palm. “It’s really strong… you know… like…”

“… spider string… no… _silk_ ,” I finished. “Holy shit. And the _suit?_ ”

Even in the dark, I saw his face redden as he looked down sheepishly. “I’ve been helping people. _Trying_ to help people. But I’m not very good at it yet. But Willow, you can’t tell anyone about this. My aunt would freak and—”

“Relax,” I said. “I’m not telling anyone.”

“Right. Cause you’re…”

“Here as well.”

“How?”

I sighed. “Peter… uh… what I’m about to tell you… you have to promise not to freak out and just… let me finish. Okay?” _What’s the game plan here, Willow?_

“I’m not going to freak out,” he said. “I promise. I mean, I just told you I’m Spider-Man—”

“Spider-Man?” I interrupted. “Is that what you’re going with?”

“Yeah?”

“What, like an alter ego?”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know. I guess I just never thought about that sort of thing before. Alter egos, I mean.” I picked at a hangnail and tried to decide what I was going to tell him. _The truth? Part of the truth? Do I lie? I can’t lie, he just told me his secret. So, this was what he was hiding._ “Um… I was born…” _Why is this so hard?_ I stood up and paused one more time. “Promise me you won’t freak out?”

“Promise.”

I slowly extended my wings, not taking my eyes off my shoes, feeling sick, and as if I were overheating even in the cold. _There’s no coming back from this. You can’t take this back._ “…I was born like this.” I finally gained the courage to look up and search his face. He was curious and surprised, with his mouth opened and eyebrows lowered, but not weirded out. _Of course, he’s not. He’s Peter._ “And when I was six, I was taken to a place called the Facility. It was government-run, up until… HYDRA took over the project,” I said in an exhale, barely saying the word HYDRA.

“Oh. That’s bad, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. Um… they did a bunch of experiments on us there until I ran away last fall. And then I came here, to New York City. And met you guys.”

“I had no idea… how did you… is that why you always wore a jacket inside?”

I nodded and swallowed. “The thing is… they had us do stuff there… back at the Facility… things that I couldn’t control.” I gestured to my head. “They did… brainwashing? I hurt people, Peter. Lots, I think.”

“But you couldn’t help that. If they brainwashed you…”

 _I know. But I don’t know what’s brainwashing anymore and what’s just me._ There it was. Both of our secrets out in the open, months of speculation put to rest. “Did you know?”

“I mean, after what you said to me that night, I knew _something_ … wait does Kate know? Is that why she…?”

I nodded. “Not all of it. But enough. That night Marty died… she saw. It scared her. She said that…” I swallowed again, this time feeling the growing lump in my throat. I tried to push it away. “She said that she was scared. That I scared her. But maybe she was right.”

“No, Willow, you’re not scary.”

“You don’t know what I’ve done. Whatever you’re thinking, I promise it’s worse.”

“I don’t believe that.”

_Neither did Marty._

We talked longer, late into the night. He explained how he had been developing the web fluid in chemistry class. I told him bits and pieces about what Marty had found and who had come after him. I told him that HYDRA was still looking for me, and that others were as well. “If they come for me, if I disappear,” I said. “Now you know. If that happens…”

“It won’t,” Peter said, his eyes wide. “It won’t happen.”

“But if it does, if anyone you don’t know asks about me… you have to tell me. Anyone. Government, SHIELD, HYDRA, police…”

“Police?”

“Just… please.” We devised a code to text to each other, something that even if I were being surveilled wouldn’t get picked up on. “What’s something you’d never say?” I asked.

“I don’t know… something like… _are you going to the game tonight?_ Sports?”

“All right,” I said. “Texting that means we need to meet as soon as possible, in person. This roof can be the meetup spot. I’ll text back _yes_ to confirm that I got the message, and then ask the time to meet _before the game_. Pick a time two hours _after_ you want to meet and a random meeting location. So, if we said MSST at six at night, it would be _here_ at four. And make sure to turn your phone off.”

“Are you sure all this is necessary?” Peter asked. “I mean, it’s cool, it’s like spy stuff, but…”

“Marty died,” I reminded him, feeling the familiar anger as I ruminated on the injustice of it all. _I never asked for this. Marty never asked for this. And now Peter…_ “I’m not losing anyone else because of me,” I said. “If someone comes asking about me, that’s a code red. So, text me something like _will you be at decathlon on Saturday?”_

“We… don’t meet on Saturdays.”

“Exactly. And I’ll know to get the hell out.”

Peter tapped his fist against the palm of his other hand as he thought. “Okay. Same goes for me.”

“Deal.”

Peter told me more about his new abilities as the night wore on, about the people he had saved in our neighborhoods. He seemed so excited to be able to share it with someone. I tried to give him a few pointers so that I wouldn’t get beat up so bad next time he confronted someone, and Peter asked me about what it was like to fly. For a moment, I was softened, a little piece of my heart worming its way out of the shell I had built around it in the last few months, before I pushed it back in, where it belonged. Opening up to Peter helped, but I was now more worried than ever. Worried about him, and myself. Mostly him. _I can’t afford this. I have to finish this mission I’m on. I can’t, I can’t, I can’t._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is going to be the last update for a bit! i’m working on the next arc and need to write it all before I start posting chapters to make sure the plot all works :) in the meantime, comment predictions or something? would love to know thots/thoughts. also asjdfhalsjdfh the code here is based on one my friends and I used back in the hackr days it was so stupid but also like… iconic


	75. List Of Names

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow gets into a fight after school and gets in trouble

  * **Words:** 1181
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Annabel Carson, Erin Dunphee, Kate Gray
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“really? do i look stupid?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“fuck off. i mean it.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“do it. i dare you.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016 
  * **Song:**[Look What You Made Me Do - Taylor Swift](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D117xdufmtMY&t=NDljNjA2YjQzZTAzZDk1ZTE3MzBiYzBmOTM2Yzg3MzI2NDVlYTc5MCxsTEYyUDBPdg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F620503309830275072%2Flist-of-names&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _we’re in the endgame now…_



—————————————————————————–

February 25th. The day the universe just decided to get together and collectively kick my stupid ass.

I woke up late for school and ended up getting myself detention that afternoon, before going to Spanish and realizing that I never studied for the test we had that day, even though I had the whole weekend to do so. Peter and Ned offered to help me study at lunch, but by then, I had a more pressing issue. I had found the address of another ex-Facility worker in the area. Theodore Lindsey. Lived in a suburb in New Jersey. Big house, actually. Huge lawn. Cute little homestead.

And I know, I know I was supposed to stop at some point, but I couldn’t. Not until I found that book. And I was pretty sure Theodore knew where Dr. Turner was. The book couldn’t be far from her. I had uncovered a series of emails on one of their old accounts. The two were together back about five years ago. If anyone knew where she went, he might. He traveled a lot, and based on his social media, he wouldn’t be in town much longer. I’d have to go tonight. Another name off the list. It was that easy.

“Are you sure we can’t help?” Peter asked, and I shook my head as I scrolled through information on my phone.

“I’ll be fine.”

Peter was the other issue of the day. Over the weekend, “Spider-man” had been caught stopping a bus with his bare hands. Super badass, except it ended up all over YouTube. I had been trying to help him get the video taken down, or at least muddy the water enough that it couldn’t be traced back to him, but I think he almost wanted it to stay up. Which, I understood, sort of, but at the same time, it was making _me_ nervous.

After detention that afternoon and another awesome lecture by VCR Captain America, I found myself wandering the halls at MSST, before ending up backstage in the auditorium, studying the set pieces that people had been working on that afternoon, and wondering if it was too late to join tech again. _Like I could ever handle that now._ A few students were still working, and I stepped around paper plates of paint and wooden cutouts before shaking my head and starting to leave.

“Willow?” someone said, and I turned around to see Kate and Annabel sitting on the stage, working on a fabric backdrop together.

“Oh, I was just leaving,” I said. “Sorry.” _Are they friends now? Since when?_

“No, wait, hold on,” said Annabel, standing up. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you.”

“Annabel, don’t,” I heard Kate murmur. “She’s not worth it.”

“No, hold on,” said Annabel. She got up and walked over to me. I took a step back.

“Can we go outside into the hall?” she asked.

“Why?”

“C’mon.” Her voice was flat.

In the hallway by the stage doors, Annabel paced across the tiled floor, hands on her hips as I stood motionless across the hall from her. She then smiled at me, and it took me off guard. “So… Kate’s told me some things about you.”

My blood ran cold. “What? Told you what?”

She laughed humorlessly. “Just… it’s because of you my boyfriend died, isn’t it? Had to be.” She continued to pace. “Kate wouldn’t tell me, but what’s your deal? Um… because apparently… you’re not… well, my dad would say you’re _enhanced._ ”

And there, my heart stopped completely, and I shook my head fervently. “No? What? Why would you say that?” I tried to play it off as a joke. “Wow, okay, you seriously think I’m like… what… powered? Is that what you’re trying to say? Dude…”

“ **Really? Do I look stupid?** So, what, did someone come looking for you and you threw my boyfriend in the line of fire instead? How did it happen? Or did you make the whole thing up and do it yourself?”

“Are you serious? **Fuck off. I mean it.** You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh… what are you gonna do? Get all big and green?”

I was trying to keep myself calm, but the glint in her eye and the way her mouth was twisted into some weirdly sick smile as she tried to pry out the truth was chipping away at my composure. _Don’t lose it._

“I should tell my dad,” Annabel said.

“You know what?” I said. “ **Do it. I dare you**. You’ll sound like a fucking idiot.”

She stepped forward and shoved me back a little before pointing a finger at my chest. “You’re the reason he’s dead. Whatever you brought along with you when you moved here last year, you got him killed. That’s on you.” My fingernails were already cutting half-moons into my palms. I tried not to react as she pushed me back again. “Do you have anything to say? Are you going to apologize?” _Don’t let her get to you. Don’t react._ “Come on,” she said. “Do something. I know you want—”

I couldn’t hold it in anymore. My fingers unclenched and the hallway filled with a rush of wind as I extended my palm and she shot back, hitting the wall across from me. She screamed and I gasped for control as I staggered backward against the other wall, my arms shaking, and my fingers numb with power that I was trying to control. “What the fuck?!” she yelled, just as I heard the door open on the other end of the hall. Principal Morita was standing there, with Kate standing behind him.

“She attacked me!” Annabel yelled. “We were just having a conversation and she pushed me!”

“Willow! My office—now!”

I tried to catch my breath as I steadied myself on the wall and glared at Kate, and back down at Annabel. _Oh, God. Okay. She doesn’t know you used your abilities. She thinks you just straight up pushed her. Somehow._

“Willow!” Principal Morita yelled again. On shaking legs, I followed him down to the main office, figuring out a story in my head. “Twice in a day?” he asked as we walked. “ _Twice?_ Didn’t you just get out of detention?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to, she—”

And that’s how I got myself three days in-school suspension. He wouldn’t let me go home alone and insisted that I call “home” and when I told him I wasn’t living at the Field’s anymore, he asked who to call, and I gave him Jessica’s name. I waited on the bench outside his office and banged my head against the wall, pissed at myself for getting in trouble _again_. And now Annabel was on to me, she may already know considered I used my powers _right in front of her_ , and somehow, she and Kate had been talking as well.

Just when I thought that day, February 25th, couldn’t get any worse, another office door opened and Detective Dunphee stepped out of one of the conference rooms. “Willow?” she asked. “What are you doing here?”


	76. Before Something Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow and Detective Dunphee talk before Jessica picks Willow up

  * **Words:** 733
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Erin Dunphee, Jessica Jones
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“That’s an order.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“You’re going to get yourself killed!”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016 
  * **Song:**[Atlas: Touch - Sleeping at Last](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D6G_xLGVtw8g&t=MGNkMmY3N2IxNmVkYTMxZTgwYmRlNTA5ODA4ZDY5NWI0MWIxMTVjMyxzcnUxVkJWMQ%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F620574911287705600%2Fbefore-something-breaks&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _:)_



—————————————————————————–

“I got in trouble,” I told the detective, not making eye contact and staring at the conference room behind her. “Um… got in a fight. What are you doing here?”

“We’re still following up on your friend’s case,” she said.

“No new leads?”

“Not yet.” She seemed genuinely concerned and I didn’t know how to react. “Is someone coming to pick you up? Mr. Fields says you’re not living with them anymore?”

“She’ll be here eventually,” I said. “I think.”

Detective Dunphee opened the conference room door a little wider. “Do you want to talk? I can’t imagine the last few months have been easy.” I don’t know what compelled me to agree to sit with her in the conference room, I hadn’t wanted to talk to anyone in ages. I grabbed my backpack and followed her in, plopping down into one of the swivel chairs with a huff. “Tough day?” she asked.

“They’re all tough,” I said.

“Walk me through it,” she said, and I looked up at her suspiciously. _Is she questioning me? Is that what’s this is about? No one is just nice like this._ “You’re not in trouble, Willow. I’m sure your principal already took care of that.”

“Three days in-school suspension.” I shook my head. “I shouldn’t have lost it.”

“Does that happen a lot these days?”

“Ya. It’s like… instead of feeling sad, I’m just… like… angry all the time.”

“What happened to you… it’s completely normal to feel that way. You need to let yourself mourn.”

“I can’t.”

“Hey,” said Detective Dunphee, sitting up a little straighter before leaning onto the table. There was a moment’s silence as she thought. “You know, my mother died when I was about your age. I was thirteen. Car accident.”

“Oh, God,” I said. “I’m so sorry, that’s horrible.”

Detective Dunphee shrugged. “It was really difficult. Still is,” she said with a sigh. “I’m going to tell you what no one else will tell you. No bullshit. It doesn’t get easier. It just gets easier to cope with it, and the hurt you feel now, you’ll learn to live with it. That’s how it is.”

“I—for real?”

“Yes.”

I heard the office door open outside and Jessica’s voice. _“Where is she?”_

“Look at me, Willow,” Detective Dunphee said, and she slowly reached out to clasp my hand. “If you ever need anything…” she slid me a business card. “Call me. All right? Even if it’s just a place to sleep.” _Does she know?_ She gave me a quick hug and I stiffened just as Jessica opened the conference room door.

“I talked to your principal. Let’s go.”

I reached down to grab my backpack and stood up to follow Jessica as I slipped the business card into my wallet. I’d never call it, but I didn’t want to seem rude. “Take care of yourself,” Detective Dunphee said. “ **That’s an order**.”

I walked home with Jessica and she didn’t talk to me the whole time. We were heading for her apartment, but I didn’t complain, even though I knew a lecture was coming. My mind was still racing, thinking about Annabel and Kate, and if either of them snitched. _They can’t. There’s no hard proof. Annabel thought I pushed her. Still…_

I tucked my hands as deep into my jacket as I could, trying to keep up with Jessica as she moved around other people on the sidewalk and didn’t let up on her fast clip. We got to her apartment and I followed her up wordlessly, Jessica finally breaking the silence as we got into the dingy elevator.

“ **You’re going to get yourself killed.** ”

“It was just a fight.”

The doors opened. “But it’s not, is it? Because this is a pattern with you, isn’t it?” She grabbed my shoulder and practically pulled me down the hall. “Hold on, you’re gonna love this.”

“Ow,” I complained, trying to tug myself away. “Hold on, that hurts.” She pushed open the door of her apartment and brought me over to her desk, snapping open her laptop. “Can you just tell me what this is about?”

“I don’t know, _can you?_ ” She pointed at a discussion forum on some backwater internet site and I saw the faces of the same ex-Facility members I confronted staring back at me. Discussion Post Title: _Do you guys think someone (Avengers?) are killing ex-HYDRA workers?_


	77. This Is What You Get

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jessica holds Willow at her apartment, unsure of what to do

  * **Words:** 848
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Jessica Jones
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“So, your first thought was to murder people?!”](https://the-moon-dust-writings.tumblr.com/post/180121194313/writing-prompts)
    * [“I can’t trust you alone right now.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:** [B](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NWzmi65uWk)[ehind Blue Eyes - Noah Hawley](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NWzmi65uWk)
  * **A/N:** _no comment only pain_



—————————————————————————–

Confronted with the truth, I twisted my way out of her grasp and ran for the door. _I need to get back to base. I need to get Theodore Lindsey tonight._

“No—hey, you’re not going anywhere!” Her boots slammed the hardwood floor as she ran after me, finally grabbing a hold of my upper arm and throwing me back against the couch. I got up and made a run for the door again, but only made it a few steps I felt her hand clench around my shoulder and drag me back again.

“What the fuck?!” I yelled. “Are you serious? Like you’re any better…” I felt my hands seize and the air in the apartment begin to swirl.

“I don’t kill people,” she snarled, tossing me down on the ground, and I backed up into the radiator. We stared at each other for a moment, while she shook her head. “I don’t kill people,” she said again, quieter.

I leaned my head back against the radiator and closed my eyes. “They killed Marty, Jess.”

“ **So, your first thought was to murder people?** ”

“No… I don’t know. No. But that’s…” I tried to explain myself as I rested for a moment and tried to get my emotions under control. _I wish I could just rest like this for a year. Just quiet. Dark._ My eyes snapped open as I felt something cold clink around my wrist. I tried to scramble away, but with her knee against my upper arm, she handcuffed me to the radiator. “What are you doing?!” I yelled. “I need to go home. Now. I have things I need to do tonight!”

“ **I can’t trust you alone right now** ,” she snapped, before sighing and recanting. “Just… I just need a moment to figure out what to do…”

“Let me go home, that’s what you do.”

“And see another body on the news tomorrow?”

“They’re Nazis, Jess.”

“And you’re thirteen years old.”

“I’m fourteen now. Actually.”

Jessica shook her head and ran a hand through her tangled hair. “Fuck, Willow. I really didn’t need this tonight.” She let her hand fall and gestures around the apartment, which I realized my powers left in disarray during our fight. “What am I supposed to do?”

I tugged against the radiator. “Let me go? You can’t keep me here, you’re not in charge of me—”

“Thank God.”

“Jess,” I pleaded.

“Just let me think for a second!” Minutes passed, until Jessica grabbed her phone and stormed out. I sat on the floor, open-mouthed. It was getting late. I needed to get to New Jersey. The flight would be chilly as is, and I didn’t need to added factor of having to speed over.

I tugged again on the handcuff, as hard as I could, but it didn’t budge, just bit into my wrist a little more. “ _Fuck,_ ” I said. Jessica hadn’t returned, and I tried again, but it just hurt. I realized my phone was still in my jacket pocket and with one hand, I pulled up the web browser and searched _how to escape handcuffs_. Definitely not the most glamorous or badass method, but I’d take anything.

I found a Youtube video and pulled it up, my leg bouncing as I waited for the ad roll to play, which blasted out of my phone speakers. “Shit, fuck.” _C’mon, ads? Right now?_ I turned to volume down as low as possible and watched.

 _Okay. I need a thin piece of metal. Something that can fit between those teeth so I can slide these back open. What did they call that, a shim?_ I felt around in my pockets again but couldn’t find anything around me that would work. Carefully, as far as the restraint would allow, I reached over to Jessica’s desk drawer that was several feet away from me.

It was an absolute mess and I could barely reach inside, my fingertips brushing the various objects in there. My fingers closed around a paper clip, and while it wasn’t what I was hoping for, I was willing to try anything.

Back to the video. They covered opening it with a paper clip as well. _Stick it in the keyhole. Thumb over the hole. Notch it just like that. Why isn’t this working?_

_Because this only works in movies and on Youtube, dipshit._

But I had no other options, so I kept trying, growing increasingly desperate until something popped, and the teeth slide out. I tugged my hand away, the cuff falling against the radiator. “Holy shit, okay,” I breathed. “Thank you Lazerman501.” I scooped up my belongings just as I heard footsteps returning from the end of the hallway. In one motion, I pushed the window open and jumped out, my feet slamming the pavement and my knees absorbing the shock so badly I thought they would pop out of place.

I took a second to reorient myself and then took off running back towards my home base. The sun had set, and I had another mission. _Jersey and back before school tomorrow morning. Easy peasy._


	78. Unforgivable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow takes out an eleventh ex-Facility member and is horrified by herself

  * **Words:** 1124
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Okay, but consider this: I don’t care.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“Do you ever regret it?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:**[Rain on the Pretty Ones - Ed Harcourt](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dx2KwNO6oAbU&t=N2NiMTUxMjk3NTkyNjFkMDk1MTQ0NWViYTQ0ODYwNGRmYmIxYzMwZixZZUJRMW1raw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F620759136500613120%2Funforgivable&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _:(_



—————————————————————————–

It was raining in New Jersey, and I was cold and wet by the time I landed in Theodore’s neighborhood—which sucked because I had planned on burning his house down.

I watched the house for about fifteen minutes, trying to decide the best course of action until the garage door suddenly opened, and a figure began dragging trash barrels to the curb. I recognized the light brown hair and glasses almost immediately. _That’s him._

Swooping down, I landed almost silently on the driveway behind him, my pulse steady as I sized him up. _What’s the plan here?_

“Hey,” I said, speaking over the patter of the rain on the pavement and through the black bandana over the lower half of my face. The face paint ran in streaks down my cheeks. “Theodore? I have some questions for you.”

The barrel clattered down as he jumped and turned around, his wet hair flopping down into his face and his glasses speckled with water. “Who are you? Where did you—”

“I need to know where Doctor Turner is,” I said. “I know you know who she is.”

“Dawn?” he clarified. “No.”

I held my hands up and widened my posture. “I need to know where Doctor Turner went. You two worked together. Had a _thing_ going on. I know you know something. You worked in the labs.”

“Okay,” he said, trying to reason. “Take a deep breath. Ca—”

“No!” I yelled over him. “Where is Doctor Turner?” With a gust of wind, he toppled backward onto the pavement.

“I can’t—”

I took a step forward. “Where is she? Tell me where she is!”

“New Mexico!” he screamed. “She’s in New Mexico!”

“Where in New Mexico?”

“Dulce!”

I blinked, surprised at how fast he gave her up. “You’re lying.”

“No, I swear I’m not—please! Don’t hurt me. They depend on me—”

I held my hands a little higher and the wind began to gust around me. “ **Okay but consider this: I don’t care**. I read your file. I know what you did at the Facility. How could you do that? Did you ever look at what you were guarding? Ever? Did you ever _think_?”

“Please,” he said again. “I don’t do that anymore.”

Debris began to pick up in the air and I could hardly hear his voice over the roaring in my ears. “ **Do you ever regret it?** Ever?” There was a tearing noise behind me, and I saw the house creaking under the force of the wind. “Answer me!” For a moment, I was distracted by the tree limbs finally snapping, and when I turned back, he had lunged for me with a primal cry.

I ducked down, and with a crack, I felt air surge out around me and I gasped for breath as I crumpled to the ground, feeling completely depleted. I couldn’t feel my body and dust bit my face. Theodore was screaming, and when I had the strength to look up, I saw him pinned to the ground by a large tree branch, his legs a mangled mess.

I stood, my knees wobbling under my weight, and as the wind began to clear, the rain picked up, pouring out of the sky.

“Help me,” he rasped. “Please. My legs…”

I watched him under the branch, saw the blood mixing with the rainwater and flowing down the driveway. When I stepped closer, I saw another branch carving itself into his neck, as if he had been impaled on it. With the rest of my strength and fury, I lifted my hand again and called for the wind again, pushing him further into the sharp branch until it emerged from the other side of his throat. He stopped begging and fell silent. I panted as I watched him become part of the scenery, the rain falling over him as if he were another piece of debris, a fire in the garage reflected in his cracked glasses.

_I did it. Hail fucking Hydra. And I got a location. Dulce, New Mexico._

My bandana stuck to my face, along with strands of my hair and wet bits of dirt and greenery.

“Daddy?”

_What?_

_Don’t look._

_Don’t…_

I turned around to face the direction of the tiny voice and in the wreckage of the house, there were two children, standing on the steps in pajamas and without shoes. A girl, maybe five, and a boy who couldn’t have been older than three. _Oh, no. No one said he had kids. There was supposed to be no one here._

“Is that my dad?” the girl asked again. “Is he okay?”

“No, no, don’t look at him,” I said, moving so they couldn’t see in the body in the driveway behind me. As I moved closer, the boy started crying, hiding behind his sister, who looked equally terrified.

“Please don’t hurt us,” she whispered.

I saw my reflection in the broken car windshield fallen in the front yard—the space around my eyes hollow and black, my face streaked, half of my face covered and my eyes unrecognizable. I had never seen my reflection when I was like this. I tugged the bandana away from my face and tried to wipe my face off. “No, no,” I said. “I’m not going to hurt you. Look, I’m just like you. Okay?” I tried to smile. “I’m Willow. I’m fourteen.”

“You’re not like us,” the girl said. “What did you do to my dad?” She tried to jump off the stairs. “Dad?”

“No,” I said. “Uh… stay with your brother. All right? Do you have a phone?”

“Mommy has one,” she said and pointed inside the wreckage. There was a woman lying where the kitchen was, eyes open, completely stiff. I felt like I was falling, as I turned and saw the damage I had done.

“No,” I whispered, climbing over broken boards and furniture. “No, it wasn’t supposed to be you too. No…” I saw a glint and saw a phone in her right hand and with my thumb and index finger, I slipped it out, wiping off the wet screen. I dialed 911 as I walked back over to the kids.

“A homicide,” I said, giving them the address. “Yes.”

I handed the phone to the girl. “Stay with your brother. I-I’m so sorry.”

I didn’t know how to react, how to feel and I took off into the storm as flashing lights and sirens descended upon the homestead and I shot off back to New York. I had seen my reflection, what I was, what they had made me. I realized how much I hated her. But I couldn’t change that now. _This is what you are. You’re a monster._


	79. Flight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow receives visitors while at school

  * **Words:** 1817
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Natasha Romanoff, Steve Rogers
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“call me now. it’s urgent.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“What did I do wrong?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:**[Flight - Hans Zimmer](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dw4OdIOGBW2Q&t=NTgyMmY0MWIwNTAyZDU1NTczOTZiOTIzMmI5MTIyOTczZmRjNjFjMSwzSm5DNEw0SA%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F620847264442777600%2Fflight&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _passed 300 views on Ao3! what?! like i know that’s not a lot but it’s a lot for me lol_



—————————————————————————–

I wanted to skip school the next day—I hadn’t slept all night and I still had to get up early to shower in the locker room before school. I probably would have skipped if I didn’t have in-school suspension, which had to be the stupidest thing I’d ever heard of. Like… I’m already here, aren’t I? At that point, just let me go to class.

So, I dragged my ass to school, cleaned up in the locker room. I didn’t even bring a backpack to school that day, just my phone, and a charger. And a sharpie as a writing utensil. _Off to a great start, per usual._

I ran into Peter and Ned in the hallway and they were surprised to see me there that early. “Hey, what’s up?” Peter asked. “Did you get number two on the algebra homework last night because Ned and I got two different answers. I texted you but…”

“Yeah… uh… no, sorry,” I said. “I forgot to text back.”

“Wanna go over it at lunch?” Ned asked.

I sighed. “Look, guys. Um… I got in-school suspension. Three days. I won’t be in class today.”

“What? What did you do?” Peter asked, his forehead crinkling with concern. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“I got into a fight with Annabel,” I said. “After school.” I glanced down at my phone lockscreen. “I don’t really want to talk about it.”

“Jeez, okay,” said Ned. “Wanna hang after school then?”

 _I can’t. I can’t do this anymore._ “Sure,” I said. “Text me.”

We parted ways and I walked to the guidance office, where I’d be spending the rest of the day. It was a beautiful, sunny winter day, which made the whole thing seem even more depressing. _I’m going to have so much work to make up. And we were doing review for the biology unit test in class today. Shit. I’ll have to get the notes from Ethan._ In guidance, I was faced with another awesome Captain America VCR tape. _“So, you got in-school suspension. You messed up…”_

_Jesus Christ._

“They’ll be sending your work down to you shortly,” said one of the guidance counselors.

“Great,” I said, completely deadpan. “Um… could I borrow a pencil?”

She frowned and handed me one from the colorful mug on her desk, a chipped _D.A.R.E. to Resist Drugs and Violence_ pencil, and I took my time getting up and sharpening in the electric sharpener by the door. _I can’t sit here all day. Physically. I’m gonna fall asleep, and then I’ll get another day tacked on._

_I miss… I miss how things used to be._

Eventually, a manila folder of work was dropped off at the guidance office and I cracked it open, trying to decide if it was even worth doing any of it at this point. Even though my first term grades were good, I was barely scraping by now, and I didn’t have much hope for the third term, either.

Around nine, I had filled the margins of my Spanish homework with doodles and I was coloring in the spaces with a sharpie when the phone rang. I heard my name through the receiver. “Willow?” the guidance secretary asked. “They want you to report down to the main office.”

 _You’ve GOT to be kidding me. At least this is more interesting._ “’kay,” I said, closing the folder, standing up quickly, almost excited for anything to break to monotony. But something felt wrong, and I couldn’t place what. As I walked down to the main office, my steps echoing in the empty hallway, my stomach began to clench. _What is it now? How could things possibly get worse?_

I became hyperaware of every noise, the sound of the heating escaping the vents, conversation in a nearby classroom, my own heartbeat. _Calm down. You need to just calm down._

I paused outside the main office door and then opened it, as I forced the rest of my paranoia back. “Hi?” The office was silent except for the receptionist writing on a Post-It, and what looked like a dad in one of the waiting chairs, typing on his phone.

“Willow?” the receptionist asked, looking up.

“Yeah.”

She nodded her head down the hallway. “Conference room.”

“Do you know what this is about?” I asked.

She shrugged. “Why the hell would I know?”

_Fair enough._

My feet heavy, I trudged down the carpeted hallway to the conference room, the same one I had met with Officer Dunphee in only a day ago. _Is that what this is about? Does she have something to share with me? Or am I in more trouble?_

I paused again in the hallway, trying to hear who was in the room, if anyone. _Something is wrong. I know it._

_“You saw it, too. We can’t risk it anymore.”_

_“I know. It’s just… is this the right way?”_

I recognized the second voice, a male, and tried to run it through the catalog of all the other men I knew in my life. Marty’s dad? Principal Morita? The list was small. I opened the conference room door and decided to get the first word in. “ **What did I do wrong?** ”

Time seemed to grind to a complete halt. There were only two people in the conference room. A woman. Red hair. Wearing all black. And the man. It took me a few precious microseconds to deconstruct it, but I knew the face because I had stared at it so many times before.

_Captain Fucking America._

“Willow?” the woman asked. “Do you want to sit?”

At that moment, I had a decision to make and as each fraction of second ticked by, as my heartbeat was reduced to a slow drone in my ear, I made it. _Whatever this is, you need to run._ It was a split-second reaction as I pivoted and sprinted back down the carpeted hallway, flying out of the main office as I heard the chairs scrape the conference room floor and the woman say something to the man. The “dad” sitting in the main office lunged for me as I ran for the door and I opened my palms and struggled to control my power, pushing him back just long enough for me to get out.

Comms chattered outside, I heard vehicles idling. The adrenaline seemed to dial my senses to a ten and I heard it all. _It’s happening. They came for me._

I sprinted down the hallway, my mind racing, trying to get out of sight as footsteps pounded behind me. _I can’t take them on. I need to get as far away as possible, right now. This is a fight I know I can’t win._ “Hold on!” the woman yelled, but I heard heavy footsteps gaining on me and I turned, my hands pushing outward just as a projectile redirected from my chest and wind shot past it, back down the hall. _They were going to shoot me._

With dawning horror, as a tide of wind pushed through the hallway, I ran for the auditorium, pushing open the stage doors and running for the camera perch, just somewhere to hide and regroup. I opened my wings, but I didn’t have enough room to gain momentum and get up there, and after a few failed hops, I was still on the ground and running out of time.

The ladder. I climbed the ladder up to the rafters just as the doors opened and a flashlight surveilled the space. I laid down as flat as I could against the rafters above the cameraman’s perch, praying I wouldn’t be seen, that they didn’t have heat goggles or something like that. I was still trying to process everything, what this meant, _why?_

_You know why._

The flashlight clicked off and the door shut. I heard talk of calling in SHIELD to secure the room. _Of course. That’s who’s outside._

With shaking hands, I pulled out my cellphone and pulled up Peter’s number. _Pick up, please just pick up._ It went to voicemail and I waited three agonizing seconds for the beep. “Peter. It’s me. **Call me now. It’s urgent**.” I then paused and reconsidered. “The really bad thing I said might happen has happened.” _Is this really it?_ “Um… I have to go now, and I don’t think I’ll be able to be in touch for a while. Can you tell Ned? Please? Um… and Jessica Jones. Alias Investigations, her number is online. Bye. Thanks for being my friend.”

I hung up and powered my phone down, slipping it back into my pocket just as the auditorium doors opened again. SHIELD agents this time. Lots of them.

_I still have a mission. I need to find Doctor Turner and get rid of that book. Dulce, New Mexico._

_I can’t get caught now. Not yet._

I shimmied along the rafters, as quietly as possible, each creak and groan sounding like gunshots in my head. The comms chattering down below were beyond distracting as someone relayed instructions. I continued to move, an inch at a time until I reached the ladder to the roof access. _Easy now._

I stood, praying I was out of sight and gave the trapdoor a push. It didn’t budge. I tried again. Nothing. Finally, I put all my weight into it and on the third try it screeched open and immediately the agents below went silent. Light filtered in and I was suddenly illuminated in the dark auditorium, cold air filling the rafters.

Before I could think of all the possible consequences, everything that would happen once I made this decision, as the chatter picked up and another projectile nearly struck me, I jumped up onto the roof and began running, as fast as I could, opening my wings, not caring who saw now. The edge of the roof approached fast and I jumped off, letting myself fall towards the ground until I angled myself and swooped upward, rapidly gaining altitude. I looked down and saw a plethora of black SUVs outside MSST, and the same people from the conference room standing outside, staring straight up. I was too high to be caught now.

Something was approaching from where the sun was—I heard it cutting through the sky and saw its shadow—and without a pause, I narrowed my span, shooting through the sky, as fast as possible, aiming for the clouds that I hoped to lose them in. _If they have someone in the air, they know what I can do._

I breached the clouds and passed through the white vapor, ducking and weaving as fast as I could, knowing now that I could never go home. The wind bit at my skin as I charted a new course, my limbs numb with adrenaline, my vision blurred. _Gooblin’s in upstate New York. The fire tower. I need to get there._

_They found me. I can’t go home._


	80. Has Just Begun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow, now on the run, meets up with Gooblin

  * **Words:** 1061
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Gooblin
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“I need a place to stay.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)
    * [“this is all a fucking disaster.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:**[Nice to Meet Me - Zack Hemsey](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DZ7m_qmr7KYA&t=ZTEyZjA5ZGExYmYxOTVhNDAwMTRjNjljNWI2NmY4NGI0ZmQxMDRiMSxzVWpCcmFQbw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F620917386097360896%2Fhas-just-begun&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _…_



—————————————————————————–

Without my phone, I had a much harder time navigating to Gooblin’s fire tower. I knew the general direction, and a few landmarks to guide to, but it was a crapshoot, especially when I was hiding in the clouds.

After about half an hour, it became apparent that I hadn’t been followed and I had lost whatever tail there was in the air. Didn’t mean that was it, though. I knew I had to get out of the sky soon and stop following the highway. I needed to disappear.

I landed as soon as I saw the woods and started walking. My fingers were itching to turn on my phone and pull up a map, but I was afraid they’d track it the minute it turned on. I thought about everything I had left behind at my base. My laptop. Marty’s drive. Nedward and Boxer Joe. _Who’s going to take care of them now?_ The stupid stuffed elephant. I didn’t have much, but what I did have had been precious. All I had to my name now was a phone I couldn’t use, the sharpie still in my pocket, and the clothes I had fled with.

It hadn’t snowed in a while and I left no footprints as I went further and further into the wilderness. _Is this really it? Am I really done? I can’t go back to NYC. I can’t contact anyone from there. What happens now?_ Because, beyond Dulce, New Mexico, I couldn’t see what my future was supposed to look like. I had wrecked everything to get this far. _And there’s still work to be done._

I started recognizing landmarks, the way the hills curved, and the wide-open views up ahead. When I came to a clearing, I realized I had flown over it before. Gooblin’s fire tower couldn’t be much further. I trekked deeper and deeper until above the trees ahead, I saw the tower up on the hill. I ran for the tower, my movement catching Gooblin’s attention. She came out to stand on the deck and yelled down to me.

“Heckergal? What are you doing here?”

“Um… **I need a place to stay**. I can’t stay in the city anymore. They came looking for me.”

“Really?” Gooblin asked, and I was thankful that she was the most mellow of my siblings. “That’s crazy. Come on up.”

I took a few steps back, and instead of taking the stairs, got a running start and flew up to the deck, almost overshooting it. “Thanks,” I said, removing my hands from pockets and using them to warm my numb face. I hadn’t been able to grab my winter jacket when I was, so I was just in the jacket I used at school to hide the wings.

“You can come in,” said Gooblin, and she opened the tower door, letting a blast of warm air out.

“Oh, this is much better,” I said, and I sat down on the floor, exhausted.

“Who was it?” she asked.

“Um… SHIELD,” I said, still trying to process the other two people. “I got into a fight yesterday and accidentally used my powers. I didn’t think she knew, but now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure that hallway had cameras. It was stupid, and I wasn’t thinking. I should’ve have gone to school today.”

“Did they try to talk to you?” she asked. “Sabbath said they talked to her when they put her on the Index.”

“What’s the Index?” I asked. “And since when? How did they find her?”

“She said that SHIELD keeps a list of people with powers, that’s what the Index is. And they didn’t find her,” Gooblin said. “She contacted them. She said it was safer that way. It was at the beginning of December.”

“But she said she wouldn’t,” I said. “She said last time we met that she wouldn’t turn herself in.”

“She was lying, I think.”

“And she went and put herself on a list? And didn’t tell us?”

Gooblin was silent.

“Why would she do that?” I asked.

“She didn’t tell them about the… blue lab stuff… if that makes you feel better,” said Gooblin. “Just the vocal manipulation thing. Not the water thing.”

“ **This is all a fucking disaster** ,” I said.

Gooblin went outside for a little bit to enjoy the view and I continued to sit on the floor of the tower, uncapping the Sharpie and retracing _Sumerkey_ on my upper arm, before going over to Gooblin’s computer set up. I rapped on the window. “Okay if I use this?” I asked, and she nodded.

I knew I couldn’t log into any of my accounts; I just needed maps—some sort of course of action towards Dulce, New Mexico. I had never traveled that far before. I didn’t know if I could make the whole flight, and if I could afford to be a fugitive, traveling across the United States with a target on my back. _It’s too cold to fly. You’ll never make it—it would be at least a fourteen-hour flight._ I started looking at bus websites, but everything to New Mexico seemed to depart from NYC, and I couldn’t afford to go back there.

_Flights?_

I scoffed at the irony.

I couldn’t drive and hitchhiking was out of the question.

 _Stowaway? Maybe on a semi?_ Risky. I sighed and started looking at the bus website again, beginning to plot connecting trips, until I landed on one that would take me from Albany to Colorado Springs. _Close enough?_ It was a little more than a hundred dollars, and sure it would take _forty-two_ hours, but it was the best I could do.

“What’s up?” Gooblin, asked coming back inside. She took a look at the screen. “Buses? To _Colorado?_ What’s there?”

“Absolutely nothing,” I said. “I just need someplace to disappear.”

“What, my place isn’t good enough for you?” she laughed.

“No,” I sighed. “It’s not that. I just need to get as far away as possible right now.”

“Fine, whatever,” she said, but I knew she was joking. _Thank God that out of everyone who has to hear about what happened, it was Gooblin._ “Are you at least going to stay the night?”

I took another look at the list of departures from Albany. “Yeah, thanks.” Paused. “You don’t happen to have a hundred dollars, do you?”


	81. Open Fields

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow heads out to find Dr. Dawn Turner

  * **Words:** 686
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Gooblin
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“just… come back alive, okay?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“Promise me you’ll come back.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:**[America - Simon & Garfunkel](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DEo2ZsAOlvEM&t=OTRhOWNkNzM4NmM1ZDBjMTBmMGY5MDYzOGMxMjZiNDg2MjM1MTBjZSxjMG53R2NDYg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621003229380198400%2Fopen-fields&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _mosquitoland vibes_



—————————————————————————–

The bus station was nearly empty when Gooblin dropped me off. It was still dark out, about five in the morning. “ **Just… come back alive, okay? Promise me you’ll come back.** ”

“I’ll be fine,” I said. ‘Promise.” I knew SHIELD was probably monitoring any transportation depots and I kept my head down and away from the security cameras. I couldn’t stay any place too long, and I had arrived at the station right before the departure. “Thanks, Gooblin.”

“See ya,” she said. She didn’t wait for me to get on the bus and instead gave a half-wave as she walked away, and people began crowding the platform.

I knew I looked like a runaway—I was a runaway—but I had a cover story by the time I took my seat near the middle of the bus and a young college-aged guy sat down next to me. “Ready for the long haul?” he asked. He had curly black hair, faded on the sides and left long on the top and dimples when he smiled.

“Yup.”

“Visiting family or something?”

“My parents are divorced,” I said. I had hundreds of stories and details that Marty had told me about his parents. “Seeing my mom.”

“Word,” said the guy. “Mine are divorced, too.” He laughed. “Dad found my mom cheating.”

The bus departed just as the sun began to rise on the horizon and I stared out the window and watched the landscape pass by. Open fields snowed over with tall yellowed grass poking through, faded billboards, _Hell is Real_ , lonely churches and community halls, the occasional cow mooing under the bright blue sky.

Once again, I considered turning on my phone, but I knew that would be a mistake. After fifteen minutes, I was already bored. The college kid next to me had his laptop out and was working on some sort of PowerPoint presentation and I watched as he dragged and dropped diagrams from his image library.

“What are you studying?” I asked.

“Microbiology.”

“Oh, neat.” _I have no idea what that means._ “Do you go to school in New York?”

“Vermont,” he said. “But there was no direct bus from Vermont to Colorado Springs.”

The minutes stretched into hours as we crossed state lines and I got closer and closer to New Mexico. The bus stopped for food and I played my cards carefully, once again avoiding cameras and paying with the little cash I had left. _And what comes after this, Willow?_

Dalmar ended up being a pretty good seat neighbor, and he shared a bag of chips with me that he bought at a gas station. I learned that he was also an aspiring musical artist, and by the time we were crossing into the Midwest, he was showing me his Instagram that he posted samples to.

In Colorado Springs, two days later, Dalmar and I parted ways, and as I departed that bus station, I turned my phone back on and grabbed a few maps from a stand. The screen lit up and I knew that I was back on the radar. I followed Dalmar’s Instagram (had to) and then opened notepad and started typing as I walked down a nearly empty street. It was early morning, the mountains were lit with an orange glow, and the sky was still purple.

_It’s Willow Wren. I’m writing this on February 21 st, 2016. I’m about to break into a HYDRA base in Dulce, New Mexico. What happens to me after doesn’t matter, so I’m setting this message to decrypt and send in one week. You might be able to crack the encryption faster if you go all SHIELD and find out I created this message, but it should at least give me a few days. But, yeah, there’s a HYDRA base in Dulce, New Mexico. When you see this, take them out for me._

I took a deep breath and plugged the message into an online program that would decrypt and send the message as an email in a week. I didn’t have any SHIELD email addresses, but I had Detective Dunphee’s, and I prayed she’d know what to do with the message.

I then wiped my phone and ditched it in Colorado Springs before taking off to Dulce, maps in hand.


	82. Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow arrives in Dulce and searches for Dr. Turner

  * **Words:** 1011
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Dr. Dawn Turner
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“You can’t run from time.” ](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/187994341257/prompt-list-one-liners)
    * [“I hope you burn in hell.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** February 2016
  * **Song:**[Ride - Lana Del Rey](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dnvb8wdBglpw&t=NDE3ZDk2MDFkZDRmNTIyNGFjYTg0MmYxNGI5MTAwNjZmZjc5ZmVmMCwzSWZtUWhsMg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621148036602757121%2Falone&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _it’s 2am i should not be posting/editing this late because there WILL be typos but whatever lol_



—————————————————————————–

The flight to New Mexico gave me more time to think, more time than I wanted. In general, I try not to spend a lot of time thinking.

The sun was still rising and in all the chaos, I realized I had forgot how beautiful the sky was, the way the sun cut through the clouds and created beamed of colored light, the occasional bird, the way cars inched along the interstate below me. It was peaceful, and for a moment I wished I could live in the sky forever, just fold myself between the clouds, snuggle up against the half-moon on the horizon.

In New Mexico, I landed out in the rocky outskirts of town and walked on in. The roads were nearly empty and without my phone, I had no idea what time it was. After a bit of walking, I found a tiny diner near the center of town and I trudged across the dirt parking lot and walked on in, sliding into the booth, exhausted. _This is gonna be the last of my money here._

“What can I get you?” the woman behind the counter yelled, and I picked my head off the table.

“Just a root beer?” _Last meal, make it count._ I didn’t have enough money for food though, just the drink, and my stomach was twisting too much to eat anything.

“Where did you come from?” the woman asked. “Never seen you around before. You lost?”

“Just passing through,” I said. “Road trip. My… brother is getting gas.”

“Huh.”

She set the plastic cup of root beer down on the sticky table and I handed her the last of my money as I began guzzling the soda. _So, what’s your plan now? You made it to Dulce. Where’s the base? Where’s Doctor Turner?_ The radio placed on the shelf on the counter crackled and hummed. The newscaster said it was eleven in the morning. Clear skies all day with a high of ninety degrees.

My foot shook under the table and it finally hit me how far from New York City I was, how far I had come. _I’ve never traveled this far before. And what now?_

I took my root beer to go and started walking again, exploring the town and trying to figure out where I needed to go next. As I walked, I used my straw to stab at the ice at the bottom of the cup, turning the last bit of root beer into a frozen slush-like substance. _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster. Sumerkey._

I wanted to sleep so badly, I was so tired, even if I had been on the bus for two days, but I was too wired, too scared to sleep. _What if I fall asleep and I don’t wake up?_

Eventually, as the remaining ice in my drink began to melt, I made my way past the outskirts of town, towards the hills that flanked Dulce and began to follow a road that went up the mountain and then back down. At the bottom, where the land leveled out again, there was an underpass on the road up ahead, which was weird, because there was no road above it. It was just the structure of an underpass with no purpose. _Okay, that has to mean something._ By now, my root beer and ice were completely gone, but I continued to carry it because I felt bad littering.

I checked the whole structure, top to bottom, but I couldn’t find anything unusual about it, and as the afternoon set in, I realized that I may have been sent on a wild goose chase. _There might be nothing here. You may have done all this for nothing. You had no reason to believe that he was telling the truth._ I finally sat down on the concrete slope up to the base of the underpass, letting it shield me from the sun and tried to figure out what I was supposed to do next. Not only was I out of money, but I had stranded myself in the middle of nowhere, and it wasn’t safe to venture into a more populated city.

I explored a little more before returning to the underpass, but as the sun set that night and I failed to light a fire to warm myself in the cooling landscape, I was just sunburned, thirsty, and beyond hungry. My hair stuck to my face and my shoes had gone from yellow to a muddy brown color.

“Shit.”

My head hurt and I couldn’t even remember the last thing I ate. _It must have been before Colorado Springs. So… yesterday some time? And I’m too stubborn to go elsewhere for help right now._

I didn’t want to sleep, but I passed out sometime early the next morning, which brought in a fitful series of dreams, somehow made worse by my hunger and delirium. _October, shh. It’s time to play Monster. Sumerkey. Shkval. Wipe her and start over. Take a deep breath. Take a deep breath. Calm your mind._

“Take a deep breath.”

Like a stake had been driven straight through me, I jackknifed up, bringing on a wave of dizziness as my eyes adjusted to the light, heard the hum of a helicopter up ahead and saw the black cars blocking off the roads up ahead. _No, this is another dream. You’re not seeing this. This isn’t real._

One of the car doors slammed and I felt my pulse in my eyes as I tried to focus on the figure stepping closer. “October,” she said. “ **You can’t run from time**. You knew it was only a matter of time.” She laughed. “Didn’t think you’d come to us, though.”

None of it seemed real. “ **I hope you burn in hell!** ” I yelled back and just as I said that, before I could square up and prepare to at least try and fight my way out, a device landed in the underpass, and electricity split out of it, engulfing me and the underpass, knocking me back out.


	83. Pulse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow is recaptured and held by HYDRA

  * **Words:** 876
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Dr. Dawn Turner
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [18\. “I’m alive… I can tell because of the pain.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/611457127330054144/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)
    * [“it’s just a cut, really.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[Brittle Boned - Julien Baker](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D5f9fS5djuNM&t=Yjk1ZDQzMzQ0OGMzODU3YzY5MTRiMzk0OGM3OWMzYzIzZmU0NWQyZiw0RTNocFZTag%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621212811354324992%2Fpulse&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _RIPARONI_



—————————————————————————–

**_I’m alive… I can tell because of the pain._ **

My first instinct was to run, to get out, but as I cracked my eyes open and they ached as they fill with light, I realized there was nowhere I can go. I was laying on a cot, concrete on three sides of me, and a glass wall on the fourth side that looked out into the lab beyond. _No… no no no._

I stuck my hands out and tried to use my powers, but there was nothing in the cell for me to manipulate, and my head felt too foggy to really concentrate. There was a whole fleet of scientists in the lab, working on computers and on lab benches, the space dim and grey, definitely underground.

I wasn’t thirsty anymore, and as I pulled up the sleeve of the white clothes they had me in, I found a piece of gauze taped over my inner arm. _So, the experiments have already started._ I felt my breaths getting faster and shallower as the reality of the situation set in. There was no getting out of this. There was no escape, and the door across from the glass was bolted shut. It was just like the room I had spent years in at the Facility, staring out through the glass, waiting for the door to open and another trial to begin.

I shut my eyes again. _Wake up, wake up, wake up. This can’t be real, this isn’t real. You’re not here, you’re not—_

Something opened up in the ceiling above me, and before I had time to process that or even react, it lit up with electricity, and just like the device in the underpass, electricity exploded outward, and I fell back unconscious.

_“How is she?”_

I came to again and this time, I was outside of the room, on a table. I couldn’t move my arms or legs and when my eyes focused, I saw that Dr. Dawn Turner was entering, talking to another scientist in the room.

“Heartrate still elevated, but fine.”

“Good. Let’s begin.”

She turned and her gaze landed on me, my brown eyes connecting with her bright blue ones for the first time in more than a year. She was here, right here, and I couldn’t do anything. I wanted to glare back, to say something, but fear overtook me, and I couldn’t say anything. “Take a deep breath,” she said curtly. “Calm your mind.”

_No. I know what this is, I know what it is, Marty had it figured out, we figured it out. If I know maybe I can—_

“You know what is best,” she said. “Right?”

_I nodded. Why am I nodding?_

“What is best is you comply. Compliance will be…?” she asked.

“Rewarded,” I whispered, the words filling in without me even thinking about them.

“See?” said Dr. Turner, smiling almost gleefully at the other scientist. “She still remembers. Is it ready?”

“Yes,” he said. I turned my head and saw a thin knife in his hand and began to fight the restraints, but Dr. Turner shushed me sharply.

“October,” she said, like a warning, and placed her hand on my forehead, pushing my head to the right so that the back of my neck was exposed. I didn’t even fight in then, it was like any will to fight had been sucked out of me, and I was just existing here, even if the fear was still real. “ **It’s just a cut, really** ,” Dr. Turner said. “No need for this.”

I felt the knife slide into the back of my neck and something cold press up against the cut, but I didn’t move, didn’t even scream. I just let it happen, even as the blood ran down the side of my neck. Eventually, Dr. Turner took her hand away and I continued to stay in that position, letting them insert the small chip back into my neck. “Why?” I asked, using all of my strength to get the word out, even though I should have known by then there was no use asking about why they did anything.

“We’ll decide when you use your powers,” she said, standing back and watching the scientist finish up the procedure. “It’s what’s best for everyone.”

Afterward, while the doctor cleaned up and I continued to lay on the table, I watched as she typed on notes on a laptop, looking back up at me, and typing more. “Out of everyone, I’m glad we got you back first,” she murmured, almost to herself. “Your subject file is fascinating.” She hummed a little. “It will be nice to see you back out in the field. I think it will be good for you, too.” She shut the laptop, addressing just me now. “You need purpose, October. We programmed you like that. And HYDRA gives you one, right?”

“Right,” I whispered.

“It’s too early to send her back out,” said the other scientist, overhearing her words. “She needs time, reconditioning, testing…”

_I’m really here. This is really happening. How many days have already passed? Why can’t I fucking think right?_

“Fast track it then,” said Dr. Turner. “Make it happen.” She looked back down at me. “Give her a purpose again.”


	84. HYDRA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. Dawn Turner runs tests on Willow to figure out her progress since the Facility

  * **Words:** 1559
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Dr. Dawn Turner, Laura Grace Ferguson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“We have to look out for each other.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“quiet. they can hear us.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[Hydra - Henry Jackman](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DEuqCXMDL6-w&t=ODQ5MWU0ZGZlOGNiMTAzMDJmNjAzMDQ3MmZkZWVkYTM0OWRkYzUyYyxpeHh2UWlZVg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621295258566852608%2Fhydra&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _thanks for reading - as always! ily guys_



—————————————————————————–

Back in the cell. Couldn’t think properly. It was like I was processing everything through a wave of television static. I watched the scientists through the window, but nothing made sense to me. I paced, until I was too tired and hungry to pace, and sat up against the wall near the door. I knocked on the concrete wall and wondered what was on the other side as I shut my eyes.

“Hello? Are you awake?”

I opened my eyes again and looked around the cell. There was no one else there and I put my ear against the wall to see if I could hear the voice again. It sounded tiny. “Who’s there? Who are you?” I asked.

“I’m Laura Ferguson,” said the voice on the other side of the wall. “Who are you? And **quiet. They can hear us.** ”

 _I’m October. No, that’s not right. I’m…_ “Willow,” I said slowly, the name sounding so unfamiliar in this space. “Wren.”

“What’s your middle name? Mine’s Grace.”

“I don’t have one,” I said, wishing I could see who this was. It sounded like a child.

“You can share mine if you’d like,” Laura said. “So, you can be Willow Grace Wren.”

I nodded my head, even though she couldn’t see me. _Yeah, if I remember that when I get out of here. If I get out of here._ “How old are you?” I asked. “How did you end up here?”

“I’m seven and a half,” she said, and I felt a new level of despair I didn’t know was there. “My parents said it’s for work. My dad says that if I do good, he’ll let me get an Xbox. Did your parents send you here too?”

“No.”

“Oh. Why are you here?”

“It’s a long story. Are you okay? Are you hurt?” _God, this poor kid. She’s not going to get out of here. That’s not how HYDRA works. Neither of us are getting out of here unless we have some miracle._

“My tummy hurts,” Laura said. “And my head. I threw up earlier.”

 _Not good._ “I’m sorry.”

“Are you okay?” she asked, and I heard the genuine concern in her voice. “ **We have to look out for each other.** ”

“Yeah I’m fine.” I struggled to concentrate. _What are they doing with Laura here? Is she like me? Like my siblings? Or just some kid with really sucky parents?_ “Um Laura, do you have powers? I mean, can you do things other people can’t do?”

“I can fold my tongue up into a taco,” she bragged. “I’m the only person in my class who can do that.”

“That’s neat. Uh… I meant more like… you know Captain America? Like him.”

“Oh. No. But I want to.”

_Esh. No you don’t, Laura. Please… just leave her alone._

I heard motion outside the door, and I stopped talking as I moved away from the wall and back towards the cot, as far away from the door as possible. One of the guards, armed, entered, and motioned for me to stand up. I couldn’t use my powers, I didn’t have the energy to fight back, and the effect of the words they continued to repeat to me was really starting to take hold now. I felt like I did back at the Facility, like a robot, just going through the motions until the next assignment.

He walked me down a series of halls before we stopped in front of the door and he opened it with a keycard before pushing me inside. Dr. Turner was already in there, sitting at the table inside, and I was handcuffed to the chair across from her. I didn’t resist the restraints this time and she smiled as she opened up her laptop. “How are you adjusting to being home?” she asked.

“I’m hungry,” I whispered, one of the only things I could concretely think about.

“You can eat when we say so. You don’t need to eat now.”

“But I’m hungry.”

“You’re fine, October,” she said, and that ended that conversation. “Otherwise, how are you feeling? Any anxiety… stress?”

“What do you think?”

She paused before making a note. “You know what I’m going to tell you, don’t you?” _Don’t say it._ “Take a deep breath,” she said, and she took one herself to demonstrate. “Clear your mind.” She clicked her tongue. “Still, I’ll have them give you something for that.”

I looked away from her and back at the door, trying desperately to imagine myself anywhere but here.

“Look at me,” Dr. Turner said, and I turned back. “I want to ask about the others. After a period of… chaos… we are finally equipped to bring the rest of you back in. You’re going to help us do that. Do you know where any of them went?”

I didn’t answer and tried to stare at the wall behind her instead.

“ _Do you know where any of them went?_ ” she repeated, louder this time.

I knew that if I talked, I would tell her. I couldn’t help it. It was like I wanted to—like with Kilgrave and the Facility before that all over again. _It’s like I’m back to where I started._

When I didn’t answer again, she stood and hit me across the face. Hard. I didn’t react to that either.

“The only reason we haven’t reset you is because you may have valuable information,” said Dr. Turner, pacing. “If you don’t give us that, then we’ll just go ahead with the reset.” _Reset._ The _Faustus_ stuff only worked a little on enhanced individuals—we still had some sense of self. A reset was the total wipe. There was no coming back from that, and if the Monster book were used as well, that would be it. I would lose whatever bit of me was still left.

“I don’t know about the others,” I whispered. “Maybe if you just give me time to think…”

“We’ll reset tomorrow night.” I stared at the floor and I heard her shoes click across the floor as she walked towards the door, knocking on it. When I peered out, I saw several more armed guards waiting outside. “You can take her to the lab now,” she said. “I’m interested to see how she reacts to some of the new stuff we have in development.” She let one of the other scientists in past her and I watched as he uncapped a needle.

“We need to update our other samples,” she said to him, speaking over her shoulder. “Now that she’s in better shape, I have a list of biopsies I want done.”

He prepped my arm for the needle. “And that’s being done right now too?”

“Yes,” she said, just as I felt the pinprick and my eyelids began to shut again. “Let me know if there are any problems.”

I didn’t wake up until hours later, back in the cell, lying on the cot. My whole body was sore and went I sit up, I find various bandages taped down over my body. Even my wings hurt, and I lifted up the back of my shirt to let them out, even though the space was too small for them to fully expand. They were fine, but I noticed a neat line of stitches on my right one, and the ligaments themselves seem to ache. _What time is it? How much time has passed?_ I looked up at the camera in the corner of the cell and watched the red light blink on and off. In the other corner, I saw a tray with remnants of food on it. _Oh. So, I did eat at some point between the lab and waking up now. How much have I already forgotten?_

I dragged myself over to the wall I shared with Laura. “Hi Laura. You awake?”

It took a moment, but she responded. “Yeah.”

“Doing okay?”

“I’m okay. Just tired. They’re doing a test soon I think. In the morning.”

I didn’t have anything else to say to her and I watched as the scientists in the lab began to clear out for the night. It had to be late, possibly even early morning at this point. _How did I escape last time? It was luck, really._

The lights were dimmed, and I brought myself back over to the cot, wondering if I should try and sleep, if I could ever bring myself to sleep. Back when I was sleeping on the rooftop, so long ago, I had always been afraid to sleep, always half-dozing off, my ears always listening for trouble.

But now, I couldn’t even bring myself to do that, not unless they made me.

I laid my hand over the side and my finger caught something underneath it. I peered underneath and saw a wire poking out from the thin mattress. I looked back up at the camera and then slowly extended my hand towards the wire and let it cut into the palm of my hand. Methodically, I scratched in the one word I could remember, still at the forefront of my mind. _Sumerkey._

_Willow. I’m fourteen years old. I’ve been here… for three days. Maybe four. Laura is the girl next door to me and her middle name is Grace. I used to sleep with a stuffed elephant. I had two rats named Nedward and… Boxer Joe._

When I finished, I pulled my hand out and saw the word in bloody lettering across my palm. I used the scratchy blanket on the cot to stop the bleeding and I hoped that I’d remember tomorrow.


	85. Grace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dawn Turner tries to get Willow under HYDRA control

  * **Words:** 1957
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Dr. Dawn Turner, Laura Ferguson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Take your medicine.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/189892313377/drabble-challenge)
    * [“How much time do we have left?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[Selah - Kanye West](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D6CNPg2IQoC0&t=ZWM1ODUxNDQ3NThjYzRkZDRkZjg2Yzg5ZmM2NjQxYzVlZDk3YThlNyxuam9vZzUzQw%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621405864961753088%2Fgrace&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _how are we here already wtf_



—————————————————————————–

The next day contained more tests, physical trials, and a more thorough mental evaluation. I didn’t see Dr. Turner until that evening, when I saw her standing on the other side of the glass as I woke up from another series of tests.

“So, she’s ready?” I heard her say.

“If you are,” one of the scientists said. “For the trial, I would recommend a half-reset, the book, and a full reset if that goes well.”

Dr. Turner didn’t respond, and she was instead looking through the glass at me. She knocked on the glass to get my attention. “ **Take your medicine** ,” she said, gesturing towards the tray of food on the floor by the door.

There was no use protesting and I stood, groggy, and gathered the tray the door before sitting down against the wall. The food was cold and consists of a bowl of cereal, a packet of apple slices, and some awful-looking nutrition bar. There was a cup of water, a cup of juice, and a few pills in a small cup. _I could just pretend to take these. She wouldn’t know._

_Or would she?_

I looked back up at the camera. _She would._

“Willow?” I jumped as I heard the small voice and as Dr. Turner and the other scientist walked away, I leaned up against the concrete.

“What? Are you okay?”

“I can’t see and I don’t feel good,” she said, and the words stuck in her throat as she choked back a sob. “I don’t know what’s going on.”

“Do you know what they did to you?”

“No,” she responded, and she began crying. “I don’t know—I’m scared, and I feel really sick.”

“I’m right here,” I said. “Right here on the other side of this wall.”

“I think I might die.”

My heart dropped into my stomach. “Don’t say that,” I said. “You’re going to be fine.”

“I’m really scared, Willow. I don’t want to die.”

I pounded my head against the wall, wishing I could give her a hug, at least comfort her. I heard the voices of the scientists observing in the other room. “ _Very few have survived past this stage. Just the twins. We had success with the tesseract and the other children,”_ one said, nodding at me, _“but they’re far too unstable. Nothing like the twins.”_ He pointed at his head. “ _Messed with this too much.”_

I turned back to my conversation with Laura. “What games do you want?” I asked. “For your Xbox, when you get out of here.”

“I don’t know,” she said, her voice barely audible. “What are some good ones?”

“My friend really liked Minecraft,” I offered. “That game is fun.”

“What do you do on Minecraft?” Her voice was even fainter, and it sounded like she was struggling to get the words out.

“You build houses and farm and stuff,” I explained. “There’s a big world you can explore. And you can build things with your friends online. There’s also a ton of animals. Sheep, dogs, pigs, bunnies…”

“That sounds nice,” she said, and even I could barely hear her now. “Can we be friends on there? And our houses can be right next door to each other?”

“Sure.”

“And we can explore?”

“We can explore all you want.” She didn’t respond and I called out to her again. “Laura?”

I heard the door of her room open up, with the sound of shuffling feet and some sort of beeping device. “ _Time?_ ” one of the scientists asked.

“ _Eighteen-thirteen_ ,” said the other. “ _Time of death is eighteen-thirteen._ ”

_She’s gone too, now._

I stood up, shaking with fatigue, and walked over to the glass, staring out. It was all so professional, like when the two-hundred or something odd kids died back at the Facility. The pace of the laboratory hardly changed, until the body was brought into the lab for a post-mortem and I forced myself to turn away and face the back wall. _How many? How many times?_ I picked at the food still on the tray, the meal forgotten, but hardly finished and as I heard footsteps in the hallway outside, I knew my time was up, too. _This is it. After this…_

The door snapped opened and two of the guards grabbed me before I could react, dragging me down the hall as I tried to fight them off. I was screaming now because I knew what was coming, but no matter how hard I struggled, they wouldn’t let go and their grip only became tighter. My feet hardly touched the floor as they brought me into a dark room, sparsely lit with a few industrial lights. I saw the chair in the middle of it. “Let me go!” I yelled. “Please, I promise I won’t… you don’t need to do this!”

They set me down on the chair and I held up my hands instinctively but realized my powers wouldn’t work.

“October,” Dr. Turner barked, and I saw her at the top of the room’s stairs, behind a set of control panels. “You know what is best. Compliance _will_ be rewarded.” The static in my mind turned on again, and I sat limply as she came down the stairs. “Ready?”

I thought she was talking to me, but I realized she was actually talking to the two technicians on either side of the machine. “Half,” she instructed them. “Just to be sure Monster takes. No more than that.”

“Please,” I begged her. “You don’t have to do this. I—”

She pulled over a swivel chair and sat down across from me. “Yes?”

“I don’t want to do this anymore,” I said, and I began crying. Crying, I realized, for the first time since before Marty’s funeral. “Please don’t make me do this anymore. Please. And that kid… you all killed her. Why?”

She studied me, and as she did, her eyes caught the words on my hand. She grabbed my hand sharply, her nails digging into my palm. Fury flashed across her face and she gave me a sudden slap before standing up. “Who let her do this?” she asked, addressing the room. I glanced down at the dried blood on my hands, my face stinging, but the pain not quite registering, or the conversation that followed.

The only thing that brought me back was when Dr. Turner sat back down and moved the chair closer. I was still crying, realizing that no matter what I did now, the inevitable was coming. “I don’t want to do this,” I whispered, again, and to my surprise she got up and wrapped her arms around me, carefully stroking my hair. It made me cry harder. “Please, don’t make me.”

“October, shh. It’s time to play Monster,” she said, speaking only loud enough so that I could hear. “The work you’re doing for us… you’re at the forefront of something great. The things you’re capable of… the world will never understand your abilities. But what you are doing is a gift to humankind. Everywhere you go, chaos follows. _That’s_ why we love you. Do you understand?” I nodded and she let go, prompting the two technicians to take over. “Do it.”

As soon as they pushed me back and the chair began locking me in, instinct took back over, and the tears stopped almost immediately. When the gave me the bite guard, I took it almost gratefully.

I whimpered as the headpiece came down, but nothing else. There was no use fighting back, and even though I began screaming as the electrical shocks started, it came almost as a relief. There was nothing else to think about. Just the blinding-white pain in my temple, down my spine, stretching out into my arms and legs. Just as it began to stop, I heard a single word cut through my own agony.

“Sumerki. Shkval.”

The electricity ceased but now there was a new threat, as I watched Dr. Turner walk around to face me, holding a black book in her hands. _That’s the book._

“Fenestella. Anomaliya.”

It was like I couldn’t remember anything now, there was nothing to think about or remember, no words inside my head, no images, nothing. Just these words, booming through the void, so, so loud. “Vysokopreosvyashchenstvo. Poker.” I stopped fighting, stopped twitching, or trying to break free. I was all October now. “Shest’. Palyashchiy. Desyat’.”

 _Gone_. That’s the only other work I could think of besides the others. _Gone. Wait for the mission._

“Tesserakt.” Dr. Turner placed the book down. “Are you ready to comply?”

“Ready to comply,” I said.

She placed a hand on my shoulder and turned to face the others. “See? We programmed her well. There was no need to worry.” My breaths and heartbeat were even now as I waited, waited for some sort of instruction. If I had been more lucid, I would have noticed the panic surrounding the control room, even if Dr. Turner remained calm. I would have noticed the alarms and heard loud booms coming from outside. The rest of the staff were evacuating.

“Okay, October,” said Dr. Turner. “Let’s consider this your trial run. You do well, you will be rewarded.”

“What is my mission?”

“SHIELD has arrived. I need you to kill them. All of them.” She stopped for a moment, and I thought she was going to let me out of the chair, but it suddenly seemed that she changed her mind. She stepped out of my sight and I tried to see what was going on. It was just the two of us left in the room, the others already had gone to deal with the approaching threat.

The machine powered on again and the restraints tightened as I watched the headpiece get lowered.

“Mr. Thompson thinks we should wait to do the full wipe, but I disagree,” she said, stepping back around, also now holding a scalpel in her left hand. “I want it done now. No half measures. It is only holding you back.” She took a hold of my chin and turned my head as she deftly cut out the chip in the back of my neck, seizing it between her fingers before placing it down on the tray next to the chair. “Now, you are ready.” She produced the bite guard and held it out. I took it robotically. “You will not leave us this time.”

When she stepped back, the electricity started again, this time frying any remaining cohesive thought or memory I had managed to carry this far. It was like a light was going out, as if my brain was closing down little by little. I screamed and cried but it went on, it didn’t stop, and through my blurred vision, I saw Dr. Turner watching triumphantly.

I clenched and unclenched my fists as my muscles continued to seize, and I found myself straining to catch the word scratched into my hand. _Sumerkey._

_Sumerkey. Why is that there? Is that real?_

In a flash, I remembered, and with my remaining strength, as electricity continued to course through me and I seemed to sink further and further into myself, my soul retreating to where it couldn’t be hurt, I clenched my fists one more time.

And then let go.

It was like an explosion—a wave of wind seemed to shoot from every pore in my body, radiating out in a force that shook the building. The electricity stopped and the room went dark as I heard the building tearing apart. When I looked down, I was still controlling the wind and my body glowed an unnatural blue, the only light in the space, my wings ripping out from the back of my shirt as the force shredded everything around me.


	86. No Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SHIELD raids the HYDRA Facility and Willow fights for her life

  * **Words:** 556
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Dr. Dawn Turner, Phil Coulson, Jemma Simmons
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Get out of my way.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“I specifically told you not to leave.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[No Man’s Land - Rupert Gregson-Williams](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsDibxZlRhg)
  * **A/N:** _watched the first avengers again last night_



—————————————————————————–

_I’m Willow. I’m fourteen years old. I’m from New York City._

I had broken free from the chair, but I was almost too weak to stand on my own. As emergency lights came on, I realized Dr. Turner was gone. But the book was still on the table.

I grabbed it and staggered out with it, into the halls, where gunshots echoed through the metal corridors and smoke obscured figures as they fought. _I need to get outside. I need to destroy this book. I need to find Dr. Turner._ My body was still glowing, and I pushed HYDRA and SHIELD soldiers alike aside as I tried to find an exit.

Someone grabbed me and I caught a SHIELD insignia on the jacket as I thrashed around, trying to break free. “Who are you?” he said. “Hold on, we’re going to get you out of here.”

My breaths were already ragged as I tried to run. “Sir,” the agent said into his comm. “I’ve got what I think is—”

I shut my eyes and channeled the air from my own lungs, the sweep of wind from the surrounding hallways, and used all of it to push us apart, and as he let out a cry of surprise, I took off running. In the dark, the base was like a maze and I dodged wild bullets and blasts from weaponry. Everything was too loud, I could hear the comm chatters, the helicopters outside, the base’s continual siren, boring a hole through my skull. Finally, through the haze, I spotted a neon red _exit_ at the end of the hall. I tried to run, but I was too drained, and I could only walk towards the door, pushing it open, stepping outside into the cool air, book in hand—

“October!” I knew the voice, but before I could orient myself, I was slammed in the ribs—and audible cracking noise heard—and I stumbled back onto the ground, as a battle-torn Dr. Turner stood above me. “Where are you going?”

“ **Get out of my way.** ” I scrambled backward, but she was gaining on me, and behind me was only burning shrapnel.

“ **I specifically told you not to leave.** So, let’s try this again. Take a deep breath—”

“No!” I shouted and with my remaining strength, summoned one more gust of wind. She flew backward out of sight, and I lay my head back on the dusty ground as the fire burned around me. My hand still clutched the book and I pushed it into the fire, watching the flames lick at the pages and eventually consume the black cover as well, reducing the words to ashes. _That’s it. We’re free._ My wounds were opening up, stitches had been torn and I couldn’t count all the places I was bleeding. It hurt to breathe and all I could do was stare up at the sky and hope my siblings knew that they were free, too.

When I was found, the lights barely registered as I was surrounded, a man called for a medevac and someone tried to stop the bleeding. I could hardly keep my eyes open, even as a woman told me to stay awake. By the time they had moved me, I had passed out, but not before I saw the final page of the book burn.


	87. SHIELD

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow wakes up in an unfamiliar place

  * **Words:** 1526
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Phil Coulson, Jemma Simmons, Leo Fitz, Daisy Johnson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“Don’t touch me.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“here’s a glass of whatever.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[Rocket Launch - Bear McCreary](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DyCZqBEg5EnI&t=M2NkNmU1YzIwNzc0ZTg4MWQ1NDJlZGFkN2MxNjZlYTY5MWJkYzkwNyxub1JjdVp2Ng%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621509058904670209%2Fshield&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _ugh i love aos SO MUCH and i’d incorporate them more if the story allowed for it but i gotta pick my battles so to speak_



—————————————————————————–

I woke up in another laboratory, machines beeping around me, and several needles stuck in my arm. I wanted them out, but when I tried to move, I realized I was strapped to this hospital bed as well. _Again._

 _Don’t talk to these people. Don’t listen to what they say. This could still be enemy territory._ As my eyes adjusted, I saw a few figures beyond the area I was being held in, discussing something at a lab bench. Both had accents and they bantered back and forth in short jabs. Just to test, I flexed my palms as much as I could, and at least try to summon a breeze. The papers on the nearby table fluttered, and it caught the attention of the people at the bench.

“Woah, hey, don’t do that,” said the man, holding up his hands. “Jemma, she’s awake.”

The other woman hurried over and checked one of the machines before reading notes off a tablet. “Hi,” she said, and even though it sounded friendly, her wide eyes indicated a measured caution. “You’re safe. You’re at a SHIELD base.” She pointed at herself. “Agent Simmons. And that’s Agent Fitz.” He gave a small wave. “How are you feeling?”

When I didn’t respond, she looked at Agent Fitz for help, but he looked equally uncomfortable. “I’ll let Coulson know,” Agent Simmons murmured. She typed out a message on the tablet and then put it down on a table. “Mine if I…?” she pointed to the IV line and I pulled my arm away as far as the straps would let me. **_Don’t touch me_**.

“I’m going to take it out,” Agent Simmons explained. I watched as she unstuck the tape and slide the needle out. “See? That wasn’t bad, was it?”

She hummed as she checked the other machines, occasionally shooting a look at the man. “You heal fast,” she commented. “But it’s lucky Coulson found you when he did.” Agent Simmons wrote a few more things down. “Never treated someone with wings before,” she said, almost to herself, and Agent Fitz cleared his throat, cutting her off.

“I’m going to undo these now,” Jemma said softly, gesturing to the restraints. “Can I trust you not to do anything?”

I looked around the lab, listened to the conversations in the hallway beyond. My ribs hurt when I breathed, and I had never felt so weak in my life. _I couldn’t even if I wanted to._

 _“_ Just... promise me you won’t pull out the needle in your other arm,” she said. “Please?”

I nodded once.

Someone knocked on the door frame of the lab and it was the same man who had come to Marty’s apartment, a time that felt like years ago now. _Remember when that was my biggest worry?_

“Miss Wren, it’s good to see you with us again. How are you? Phil Coulson, we’ve met before.” He pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed. “Agent Simmons said all your tests checked out. You’re going to recover just fine. I’m so sorry for what you went through there.”

_So, what happens to me now? Where do I go from here? This is exactly what Jessica warned you about so long ago. I’m never getting out of here. I went from HYDRA to SHIELD. What’s the difference? I’m still trapped._

“When you’re ready, we’d like to assess you for the Index,” Coulson continued. I began to shake my head slowly. “Look,” he said. “We know. But this is the protocol. It’s for everyone’s safety.” There was so much he wasn’t saying—surely, he must have known about all those HYDRA agents and about Marty and who I was and what I had been doing. There was no way he didn’t know. The fact that it hadn’t been mentioned yet made me nervous. He offered a smile and then got up and walked over to where Agent Fitz and Agent Simmons were working, back at the lab bench.

_“Has she spoken to you yet?”_

_“Not a word,”_ Agent Simmons replied. _“She seems petrified.”_

 _“Well, that can be expected._ ” He looked back over at me. _“Stay with her. I’ve made some calls.”_

 _“We should give her something to eat,”_ Agent Fitz offered. “ _She’s probably starving.”_

Shortly after the conversation, I dozed off, and when I woke up, there was another familiar face in the doorway of the medical area, holding a tray and several wrapped items under her arm. _Agent Johnson? Is that who it was?_

“Hi,” she said. “Mind if I sit here?” She pointed to the space at the end of the bed. I shifted my legs and finally sat up, using the pillow as support. “Fitzsimmons thought it would be good for you to eat something. So, they recommended this from the canteen,” she said, holding out the tray, and I saw a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a bag of crackers, and a bowl of cut fruit. “But I got you some better things as well.” She produced a package of pop-tarts and two Rice Crispy Treats. “Don’t tell Jemma.”

I almost smiled, and she then placed a glass down on the table next to me. “ **And here’s a glass of whatever**. She said it’s some sort of electrolyte thing. I don’t know. But it’s grape flavored.” I picked at the sandwich and pulled a small chunk out from the middle on one half, touching it to my lips and finally eating it. Somehow, it was the most delicious peanut butter and jelly I had ever tasted.

“You can call me Daisy, by the way. And you’re Willow, right? I remember meeting you.” She sighed. “Look, take it from me, these are genuinely good people. You can trust them. All right? I know you hardly know me, but I’ll promise you that if it makes you feel better.”

I looked up and made eye contact, but I didn’t say anything.

“Coulson says you have abilities, right?” She smiled. “I do, too. I know how weird this all seems, the Index, trying to control them, feeling like you have to hide. You don’t have to do that here, okay? We’ve all seen some pretty weird shit.”

I heard footsteps in the hallway beyond the lab and turned and watched the door, where about five seconds later, Agent Simmons entered again. “What are you doing bothering her?” she exclaimed to Daisy. “She needs her rest!”

“Nah, we’re friends already,” Daisy said. “Right?”

By now, neither of them seemed to expect a response. “I have to take one more blood sample,” said Agent Simmons. “Is that all right?”

I held out my arm and looked away as she poked it with the needle, which Daisy watched the scientist. “Jeez, she’s not going to have any left at this rate,” she joked.

“Coulson asked me to be thorough,” Agent Simmons huffed. “I’m sorry to keep sticking you like this,” she said to me. “We just wanted to make sure we don’t miss anything.”

They hung out longer, the two of them chatting back and forth as Agent Simmons ran the samples. Eventually, Agent Fitz returned to the lab as well and when I fell asleep again, the three of them were joking around about something one of their friends had done. I found myself wondering if Peter had gotten my message by now, if Ned knew what happened, or Jessica. _What happens now?_

Agent Johnson must have noticed me watching them, because she waved a hand, motioning me over. “You can sit over here if you’d like.” Agent Simmons shot her a look and Agent Johnson scoffed at her. “It’s just across the room.”

“Coulson said…”

“Her… uh… powers…” Agent Fitz interrupted.

“You’re not going to do your airbending or whatever, are you?” Agent Johnson asked me. “See? She’s fine. Come on.”

I slowly climbed out of the hospital bed and walked over to the lab bench they were sitting at, putting up a stool. I picked at a loose thread on the hospital gown while the others let me into the circle. They continued to talk about random things, missions, or whatever, pretending like I was a normal part of the conversation even though I still hadn’t said a word. The three of them stayed late until Agent Johnson got called away and Agent Simmons sent me back to bed, mock-horrified when she saw how late it had gotten.

“ _Shame they’re picking her up tomorrow,_ ” I overheard Agent Fitz say as I lay my head down on the crinkly pillow. “ _Think Daisy likes having another powered person around. Even if she doesn’t say much._ ”

“ _Hasn’t said anything_ ,” Agent Simmons murmured. _“Don’t know how they plan to interview her tomorrow.”_

_Who’s coming tomorrow? And why? Where am I going now?_

_“You know, Romanoff used to be a SHIELD agent,”_ said Agent Fitz.

“ _Everybody knows that._ ”

“I _didn’t in the beginning._ ”

“ _That’s because you’re clueless about those things._ ”

“ _Am not!_ ”

I shut my eyes and tried to block out the rest of the lab and get some sleep. One hour at a time, even if I couldn’t imagine living the way I was anymore. _One hour at a time._ I didn’t care enough to escape, and I didn’t have anywhere to escape to. I was stuck with whatever this was, whoever was coming, even if I didn’t see the point in any of it. _I’m not worth all this. I did what I set out to do. What happens next, I don’t care. If I had died at that base, that would have been okay, too. Maybe it would have been for the better._


	88. Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow is interviewed about her past

  * **Words:** 1886
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Natasha Romanoff, Daisy Johnson
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“You want to know what I really think?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
    * [“nothing matters anymore to me.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[Dying Hero - John Debney](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DEtC2YNRini8&t=NzEwNGFiNDAyMmJhZDBjYzgwZGQ0NGQ1YmFlZWMxOGZkODAwYzJmNCxsdVpIUmgycg%3D%3D&b=t%3Ah330fsP_66fAsgU472BqWw&p=https%3A%2F%2Femcon-ocs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F621688977840324608%2Fhero&m=1)
  * **A/N:** _leave a comment if you made it this far?_



—————————————————————————–

I think it’s the next afternoon when the visitors come, but I couldn’t be sure. Wherever SHIELD had me was underground and I didn’t have my phone or anything to check the time. They gave me a change of clothes, an oversized SHIELD crew neck, sweats, and slip-on shoes, almost exactly like the ones we had at the Facility. I spent hours more sitting in the lab. Even though Agent Simmons had wrapped up any tests on me, I wasn’t allowed to leave the room, and she checked on my injuries frequently.

Agent Johnson came to get me when the new people arrived, and she took me to an interview room at another part of the base. I tried to get a look at everything as we walk, the people moving through the halls, the tech, the layout. I noticed the stares as we walk by.

“This is it,” said Agent Johnson, showing me the room. “You going to be all right?”

The room seemed to have reinforced walls, covered in thick silver metal, and there was a table with several chairs around it. I nod once, and she shuts the door.

There’s a mirror on one of the walls and I stepped over to it, placing my finger on it. _Two-way mirror maybe?_ I couldn’t see anything besides my own reflection and almost didn’t recognize myself anymore. My face was bruised purple and yellow and green, dark circles around my eyes, my lip split, a cut across my cheekbone. _How did I ever survive seven years there?_

I was too nervous to sit and so I paced instead, tracing my finger along the walls and the smooth curves of the metal paneling.

The door unlocked and opened. I turned around and saw the same woman from the conference room at MSST on the day I ran away. She was about my height and had on a leather suit, gun on her hip. She must have caught me staring at it because the first thing she said was “don’t try it.”

She sat down at the table and motioned to the chair across from her, her other arm casually draped across the back of her chair. “Please. Sit down.”

I considered staying standing, but I realized there was no point in doing so. I was already worn out just from being up and out of the hospital bed. My ribs hurt. So, I sat down across from her and looked back at the mirror.

“You’ve already got quite the resume,” she continued. “Looks like four… no… five HYDRA agents dead in the past three months. Not to mention the ones found in critical condition before police arrested them. I’d take it you have a bit of a grudge.”

_What am I supposed to say to that?_

“Right,” she said, closing the folder she had been reading from. “Coulson said you weren’t talking.” She sighed. “Do you know who _I_ am?”

_I know I’ve seen her before, I know she’s—_

“Natasha Romanoff,” she said. “And your name?”

_Whatever this is, I don’t want it. I just want to be left alone. I’m tired of being a burden. I’m tired of not being wanted. She doesn’t need to pretend._

“What can I do to make you trust me?” she asked.

I shrugged.

“So, you don’t trust anyone, then? Must be tiring.”

_It’s fucking exhausting._

“Here,” she said. “I’ll make you a deal. You answer one of my questions, I’ll answer one of yours. Anything you want to know. Because I know you must have a thousand.” When I didn’t react to that statement, she asked me again. “Your name?”

I looked back at the mirror. “Willow. Are you going to be honest with me?”

“Yes.” I looked back at Natasha and she was smiling. “Okay, so I know you fly.” She read from the file. “Wings… that’s a new one. And Coulson says you can manipulate air. Anything else?”

“Um… my hearing… it’s… I can hear everything. Or… a lot. And I can’t control the wind thing. Not anymore.” It seemed strange, hearing my voice in this room. It sounded so detached from my own, so… vulnerable here. “Where am I?”

“You’re at a SHIELD base in New Mexico. Where did you live before New York City?”

“Boston. Am I a prisoner?”

She took her time answering, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at her expression. “Do you think you are?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I’ve done a lot of bad things. Lost control.”

Natasha turned back to the files. “For a long time, you were just Subject X in these notes. Lots of related incidents, no suspects. Going all the way back to last year when someone caught you flying on camera. And then we have a fire and party caught on security footage in August, a military stand-off at a bank in D.C., all those HYDRA agents… plus uncovered footage from a HYDRA lab in 2008 that we recently found…”

“—then why not arrest me sooner?”

“We had no idea that this person was some kid in Manhattan. Not until Mr. Lindsey’s kids put an ID on you. Why did you compromise your identity there?”

I shut my eyes, thinking about that night again. “Because they were scared.”

“Huh. What did you do for HYDRA?”

I shook my head. “I think you know.” I sat back in the metal chair and tilted my face towards the ceiling. “Look. I’m not worth it. You can do what you want. Whatever you think. **Nothing matters to me anymore**.”

I looked down at her again and waited for a response while she shuffled through more of the files, occasionally reading a line or two before flipping the pages. When our eyes met again, I looked away, back at the mirror. “ **You want to know what I really think?** ” she asked.

“What?”

“I don’t think that’s true. That nothing matters to you anymore.” She pursed her lips as she pulled out another page and studied it. “And I don’t think you’re a bad person. You’re… volatile… but we can work on that. What you did for HYDRA… I don’t think you had much control over that. Do you?”

 _I don’t know. Yes. If I was stronger… if I resisted…_ “I could have fought back… or… I don’t know.” _So much death, so much violence. Over and over and over. How much did I forget? Did they make me this or was I always this?_

“What about the word on your hand? What was that for?” 

I opened my palm to look at the puffy, healing cuts. “It was the first word in the sequence that… that made me do what HYDRA wanted,” I explained. “I used to write it on my arm as a kid. When I saw it… that was always the last memory I had before… turning.” _Sumerkey. Sumerki._

“So, you did fight back. Hey,” she said, getting my attention as I turned away from the word on my hand. “You fought back in the only way you knew how. And now you can start to make amends. Don’t be what they made you.”

“I don’t know what else I am anymore.”

“What do you want to be?”

I thought back to movie nights with my friends, going to school with Marty, my side job with Jessica, Decathlon, the school musicals. _What would I give for just one more day of that, maybe even just one more hour? One hour of lunchtime with Marty, Kate, Ned, and Peter. Before everything went to shit again. How things used to be._ “I want to be normal… but I don’t think I’ll ever get that. Not anymore.”

Natasha nodded sympathetically. “And now? What do you want now?”

”I don’t know,” I said, frustrated. “I don’t know. I kind of just want to be left alone. Really.” I pushed my chair back and leaned forward, my head tilted down as I rested my elbows on my knees. “So… whatever this is… you can just arrest me or take me out or whatever.”

“We’re not here to hurt you,” she said softly. “We’re not going to hurt you.” I saw her reach out and I pushed the chair back further as it scraped against the ground.

“Don’t touch me!” I stood up, my hands shaking as I pulled my fingers through my knotted hair and tried to calm down. I was panicked again, felt like the walls were closing in, and for the first time since I arrived, the wind began again, and I couldn’t control it. _It’s happening again, nothing’s changed, I’m going to hurt someone._ I stumbled back and ended up sitting down against the wall, unable to control the shaking or the wind.

“Hey, hey,” she said, getting up and rushing to kneel down in front of me as I pulled myself further in. “Just breathe, okay? With me, take a deep bre–”

“No! Don’t– say that! Just stop, okay? I don’t need your help!” I shut my eyes and put my head between my knees, trying to get a grip, trying to make the swirling air stop. _She’s going to leave, soon. And you’ll be on your own again. But that’s fine. That’s what you want, right?_

 _“Willow.”_ I opened an eye and saw that Natasha was holding her hand up before reaching it out towards me. “Here, just squeeze my hand. Focus your energy on that.”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You’re not going to hurt me.” 

I slowly did as she instructed and shut my eyes again as she squeezed my scarred hand back. “Just focus on one thing at a time,” she said. The wind began to slow, our hair stopped whipping around our faces. “There you go,” she coached. “You’re getting it.”

Eventually, the wind stopped completely and the rest of my senses returned, the hum of the air conditioning, my own sharp breathes, the cold of the metal floor. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I can’t stop it…”

“You just did, though.” She sat down across from me and gave a small smile towards the mirror. “Look, we’d like you to stay with us for a while. Train with us. Be with other people like yourself—people who can help you control your powers. Who know what it’s like.”

“Because they don’t want me on the outside,” I said. “SHIELD doesn’t want me to leave.”

“For now, yes, that’s true. You won’t be able to leave our facility. No missions.”

“You guys do missions? So you’re talking about…”

“The Avengers. Yes. We’ve already talked with SHIELD here. They want to keep you a little longer to do an Index intake assessment and make sure you’ve recovered, and then we’d pick you up when you’re ready. Or you can stay with SHIELD. Which is fine. But I’m sure you’d be bored.”

I took a minute to think, weigh my options, as Natasha studied the range of expressions that crossed my face. She didn’t seem scared when I had accidentally started using my powers, and for the first time in a long time, I felt like I wasn’t being bullshitted either. _Be the hero I needed. Do something._ My trust didn’t go far with anyone, let alone any sort of agent. _But you don’t have a lot of other options right now._

_What’s it going to be? Stay in some underground facility until you somehow miraculously recover or…_

_“_ Okay. I’ll come.”


	89. A Promise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end

  * **Words:** 1383
  * **Characters:** Willow Wren, Wanda Maximoff, Phil Coulson, Natasha Romanoff, Nedward and Boxer Joe
  * **Prompt/Tag:**
    * [“people lie all the time.”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/618286557917593600/five-word-prompts)
    * [“Did I just see you smile?”](https://emcon-ocs.tumblr.com/post/614534006761013248/prompt-list-2)
  * **Timeline:** March 2016
  * **Song:**[A Promise - Alan Silvestri](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1szV9ohCF8)



—————————————————————————–

The next few days flew by. I begrudgingly underwent an Index assessment, got some stitches removed, and wondered what I had missed in the real world while gone for all this time. I met Phil Coulson one more time as I was getting ready to leave, with a plane on the way to pick me up.

“I think you made the right decision,” he said, stopping in the doorway of the lab as I put my sneakers on. “Wanted to wish you well.”

I gave a small smile and straightened my hair with my hand. “Will they be here soon?”

“Little while longer,” he said. “Come on, I have something for you.”

With growing curiosity, I followed him through the base, to another lab, where there was a small pile of belongings on one of the tables, and a cage next to them. “Nedward!” I exclaimed, running of to the cage and unlatching it. “Boxer Joe!”

“We found your camp after you left New York City,” he said. “Some of it was boxed up and taken into evidence, but I managed to convince them to hold on to a few things. Put it into one of our backpacks until you came around.”

I unzipped the dark green backpack and found Fanisimo’s goggles, Marty’s USB, the stuffed elephant. The Ziploc bag of photos and drawings. The bible from Father Jake. My headphones. Laptop. The binoculars from Jessica. I turned back to the cage and the rats crawled into my open hands, sniffing the air, and snuggling up in my palms. “I’m—thank you,” I said. “This means…” After everything that had happened, I didn’t think I would see the rats again. I had assumed I had lost everything. And now, just with this small backpack, I felt like I was becoming myself again. The person I had wanted to be. The one who had been so proud to finish eighth grade, the same one who had tried tons of different clubs to find out which ones she’d like. I realized that Willow was someone I liked.

“Of course,” said Coulson. He checked his phone and nodded towards the door. “Looks like they’re just arriving now. Do you need a hand with that?”

Backpack slung over my shoulder, I lifted up the cage, and even though it was much bigger than the one they used to live in, I was able to carry it. “I got it.”

We walked to the hangar, where a jet had just landed, and two figures were departing. I recognized one of them, it was Natasha, and she smiled warmly. “Ready to go?” I looked up at the other woman and tilted my head. I remembered her from the Sokovia coverage the year before. “This is Wanda,” Natasha said, introducing her. “Wanda, this is Willow.”

“Nice to meet you,” she said.

“Yeah.” The jet seemed giant up close, and far more technically advanced than I thought was possible. “Looks like a spaceship,” I said.

“Wheels up in five,” said Natasha. “Wanda, get her boarded while I talk to Coulson.”

I followed Wanda to the gangplank, where she helped me load the rats and then gave me a hand up. “These guys yours?” she asked.

“Uh… yeah,” I said. “The brown and white one is Nedward, and the white and black one is Boxer Joe.”

“They’re cute,” she said. She helped me lock the cage to the floor and secure it, before showing me to the seats that lined the wall.

“Is it loud?” I asked. “When it takes off?”

“Mm, not really,” Wanda said. “At least not when Natasha is piloting.” She smiled and helped me with the seat buckles. “Now Sam on the other hand…”

“Okay,” I said. “Are you sure?”

“You don’t believe me?”

“ **People lie all the time.** ”

“You don’t trust easily, do you?”

“Not anymore. How long is the flight?”

“We’re going back to New York, so about three hours.” She squeezed my hand. “Nervous?”

“I’m not,” I said. “Just never been on a plane before.”

“Really?” she asked. “Well, Natasha told me about your… gifts. It’s just like flying. Except you’re inside.”

“She told you?”

“A little, yes. And I saw a few of the videos. You’re not a bad flier,” she said, and then laughed. “The other stuff could use some work, but it has potential. Really.”

I sat back in the seat and looked over at Nedward and Boxer Joe, who seemed perfectly content as they scurried around. “Did she tell you how I got them, too?”

“The air manipulation… you got that the same way I did.”

I turned to look at her. “HYDRA?”

She nodded. “Except I volunteered.”

“Why?”

“We were fighting a war. I thought I was helping my people. But… I know how it feels,” she said. “These are good people, though. You can trust me on that.” As she talked, she manipulated a red energy around her fingers, almost absentmindedly, and I watched, completely mesmerized. “Here,” she said. “Show me what you can do. Can you move that jacket over there?”

I shook my head. “I shouldn’t. I… I can’t control it anymore. I used to be able to, but now whenever I get mad or upset or… I don’t know. It’s just…”

“So, you learn to control it when you don’t feel like that,” she said. “It’s all about practice.”

“What if… I don’t know… I’m afraid I’ll… break something or…”

“That’s why they had me come,” she said. “Trust me, you lose control, I can stop you.”

“Really?”

“Definitely.”

I raised my hand and steadied it towards the jacket hanging in the locker across from us. “Now, just gently,” said Wanda. “Go slowly.”

I took a deep breath and imagined I was parceling air towards the jacket just a little at a time like I had my finger over a balloon nozzle. Slowly, the jacket began to sway, and even as my fingers lit up blue and went numb, the stream was steady.

“See?” Wanda said. “You _can_ control it. You just need to practice is all.”

I heard Natasha’s footsteps as she marched up the gangplank and she nodded at us as she walked over to the pilot’s chair and closed up the jet. “Ready?” she asked, looking back at us.

I nodded.

The ship lifted off and I watched as the base below us disappeared and we rose into the sky, the landscape turning a golden brown before fading underneath the clouds. Wanda was right, takeoff wasn’t loud, and the only sound was from outside as we cut through the air. “Course is locked in,” said Natasha. “We’ll be back in a few hours.”

She turned the pilot’s chair around to face Wanda and me, sitting with her elbows on her knees as she thought. _Are they making the right decision? Am I?_ I had been so many things, so many people, that it was almost impossible to know who I was now or who I could become. But I guess that’s the thing about growing up. You’re never the same person. _Willow_ wasn’t the same person as she was three years ago, ten years ago. And maybe, in all my struggle to find myself, I had forgotten how to grow and change.

Wanda and Natasha began talking about plans for when they got back to the facility upstate, about a future mission they were preparing for, about whatever Captain America was up to.

“I can’t believe you ran from Captain America,” said Natasha, looking at me and shaking her head.

“I’d gotten enough detentions at that point to know what was coming,” I said.

Her and Wanda chuckled, which caught me off guard. “I’m sure you’ll get the lecture anyways when we get there,” Wanda said.

The corner of my mouth lifted, just for a second and Natasha caught it. “ **Did I just see you smile?** ”

I shook my head.

Outside, the clouds passed by and the late afternoon sun was turning the landscape around us orange. I shut my eyes, thinking, again, about the future. _I can’t leave. I won’t be able to see my friends. But I’m finally starting to know myself, maybe for the first time ever. I think I trust these people. And for now, that’s all I can ask for._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe we made it to the end of part one! Part two of the series will be continuing shortly and is already linked on my profile and here, so be sure to check it out/subscribe/comment, any of that good stuff if you're interested. Thank you for making it this far-- when I started this silly OC side project back in August 2019, I had no idea that I wanted to write this much.  
> \--emcon


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